-0 


o 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


A  WOMAN  OF  THE  REVOLUTION 
THEROIGNE  DE  MERICOURT 


AN  EIGHTEENTH  -  CENTURY 
MARQUISE.  EMILIE  DU  CHATELET 
AND  HER  TIMES.  FRANK  HAMEL.  Author 
of  "  The  Dauphines  of  France,"  etc.  In  one 
volume,  demy  8vo,  cloth  gilt.  With  a  photo- 
gravure frontispiece  and  16  other  illustrations, 
printed  on  art  paper. 

"Mr.  Hamel  furnishes  some  vivid  and  striking 
details  of  the  famous  men  and  women  of  the  time, 
and  his  descriptions  of  the  cafes  and  salons  are 
lively  and  entertaining."—  The  Scotsman. 


.  ^ 


A    WOMAN    OF    THE 
REVOLUTION 

THEROIGNE   DE  MERICOURT 

r 

By  FRANK  HAMEL 


AUTHOR   OF 


WITH    PHOTOGRAVURE    FRONTISPIECE 
AND    SIXTEEN    ILLUSTRATIONS 


New  York 

BRENTANO'S 

1911 


PRINTED  IN  GREAT  BRITAIN 


PREFACE 

IN  writing  the  biography  of  a  "Woman  of  the 
Revolution  "  I  found  myself  face  to  face  with 
a  great  difficulty.  It  was  either  necessary  to  presume 
a  more  thorough  knowledge  of  the  events  of  1789-93 
on  the  part  of  my  readers  than  is  general,  or  make 
constant  digressions  from  the  main  theme  of  my  story 
as  it  proceeded.  Inequalities  have  resulted  from  a  vain 
endeavour  to  avoid  these  pitfalls.  Inequalities,  how- 
ever, are  to  be  expected  when  stirring  incidents  taking 
place  against  a  background  fraught  with  huge  possi- 
bilities are  viewed  through  the  eyes  of  a  single  figure 
of  the  crowd.  That  figure  is  of  a  woman  who  has 
more  claim  to  recognition  for  her  personal  characteristics 
than  for  her  performance  of  outstanding  actions  either 
noble  or  valorous.  One  of  Th6roigne's  chief  charms 
lies  in  her  elusiveness.  While  she  has  remained 
practically  unknown  to  English  readers,  the  French 
have  never  lost  interest  in  the  doings  of  a  woman  of 
whom  they  knew  little  that  was  authentic  and  in  whom 
their  curiosity  was  aroused  by  the  imaginative  accounts 
of  Lamartine,  Lairtullier,  and  Lamothe-Langon,  on  the 
one  hand,  and  the  coarse  satires  of  the  royalist 
pamphlets  and  journals  on  the  other. 

Before  the  publication  of  Theroigne's  "Confessions" 

5 


826 


6  Preface 

in  1892  by  M.  Strobl-Ravelsberg,  all  that  had  been 
written  concerning  her  early  life  was  little  better  than 
conjecture.  But  since  that  date  several  biographers, 
amongst  them  M.  Marcellin  Pellet,  M.  le  Vicomte  de 
Reiset,  and  notably  M.  Leopold  Lacour  (whose  work 
is  very  valuable),  have  all  done  much  to  drag  forth  from 
the  mists  of  obscurity  and  tradition  the  history  of  a 
woman  who  was  neither  a  fiend  in  human  form,  as  she 
has  frequently  been  depicted,  nor  yet  a  houri  of 
transcendent  charms  and  beauty.  The  latter  miscon- 
ception is  speedily  dispelled  by  one  account  of  her 
appearance,  which  credits  her  with  "  a  wrinkled  little 
face,  a  mischievous  expression  which  suited  her  down 
to  the  ground,  and  one  of  those  turned-up  noses  which 
may  affect  the  fate  of  nations."  The  implication  of 
her  wickedness  also  falls  away  in  the  light  of  the 
remarks  of  one  of  her  enemies,  who  summed  up  her 
attitude  by  saying :  "  It  is  difficult  to  draw  the  line 
between  sentiment  and  policy  in  her  case.  She  is 
capable  of  anything  when  she  wishes  to  be  pleasant  and 
useful  to  those  who  engage  her  affections.  Her  ex- 
treme simplicity  goes  as  far  as  abandonment.  .  .  . 
She  is  made  for  love  and  close  intimacy.' ' 

The  dramatic  possibilities  of  Theroigne's  life  were 
turned  to  account  in  1902  by  M.  Paul  Hervieu,  the 
title-r61e  of  his  drama  being  interpreted  by  Mme 
Sarah  Bernhardt.  The  stage  version  led  to  a  dis- 
cussion of  its  heroine  and  brought  to  light  the  fact 
that  the  real  Theroigne  was  a  striking  figure,  passionate, 
eloquent,  determined,  fearless,  and  loyal  ;  a  lover  of 
liberty,  the  people's  friend,  and  an  advocate  of  her 
sisters'  cause.  It  has  been  said  of  her  that  she  was 


Preface  7 

not  a  heroine  in  the  best  sense,  that  her  faults  were 
too  glaring,  her  standard  of  morality  too  low,  that  she 
had  little  nobility,  and  only  enough  purity  of  purpose 
to  redeem  her  obvious  shortcomings  to  some  extent. 
But  she  possessed  adaptability  and  resource,  and  better 
still  versatility.  From  village  maiden  and  humble 
vachere,  who  wandered  in  the  green  meadows  or 
washed  linen  on  the  river  banks,  she  became  courtesan 
and  virtuosa,  adorned  with  fine  robes  and  resplendent 
in  diamonds.  Then,  impelled  by  the  rush  of  events, 
she  turned  patriot  and  reformer,  lavishing  the  remains 
of  her  wealth  on  the  altar  of  her  adopted  country. 
She  followed  with  unabated  interest  the  work  of  the 
National  Assembly,  she  became  an  orator  of  the  streets 
and  a  partisan  of  the  Girondins.  The  common  people, 
soldiers,  deputies,  even  nobles  and  princes  were  in- 
fluenced by  her  personality.  She  was  carried  away  by 
the  same  fanaticism  that  led  many  to  the  scaffold,  but 
her  fate  was  even  more  terrible  than  theirs,  for  she 
became  lost  in  mania.  Brilliant  at  the  beginning  of 
her  career,  she  was  caught  in  a  tangle  of  unbridled 
passions  and  drawn  into  a  whirl  of  terror  and  blood- 
shed. Thus  it  was  said  of  her  that  she  typified  the 
spirit  of  the  Revolution.  Perhaps  truth  is  strained  in 
this  search  for  an  effective  symbol.  But  side  by  side 
with  the  legendary  The"roigne  who  stalks  through  the 
moving  scenes  of  the  late  eighties  and  early  nineties 
like  a  demon  possessed,  slaying  and  leading  others  to 
slaughter,  plotting  against  the  life  of  Marie-Antoinette, 
and  suffering  at  the  hands  of  the  enraged  Jacobins 
women,  is  the  no  less  interesting  and  far  more  realistic 
figure  of  the  Theroigne  of  the  streets,  in  her  neat 


Preface 

riding-dress  and  feathered  cap,  deftly  handling  her  pike 
and  haranguing  the  mob  from  the  tribunes  of  the  clubs, 
joining  in  the  fetes  of  Liberty  and  raising  the  voice 
that  had  been  trained  for  the  concert-hall  in  the  in- 
spiring revolutionary  hymns.  This  Theroigne,  with 
her  captivating  ways  of  cajoling,  bribing,  and  threatening 
by  turns,  is  the  one  to  know  and  to  love.  The  work 
she  did  for  the  people's  cause  was  not  valueless  because 
it  was  sometimes  misdirected,  and  the  enthusiasm  with 
which  she  inspired  the  crowd  was  not  to  be  despised 
because,  through  no  fault  of  her  own,  the  liberty  she 
and  others  worked  for  degenerated  into  licence. 

FRANK  HAMEL. 
LONDON,  1911. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  I 
THE  PEASANT 

A  journey  through  the  Ardennes — A  capture — An  inquiry — The"- 
roigne's  story— Her  childhood— Appearance — Education— A  first  taste 
of  romance— An  elopement— The  injured  marquis— His  impassioned 
letters — Her  musical  ability — Concerts  spirituel — Tenducci — A  musical 
contract — A  journey  to  Italy — A  lawsuit — Outbreak  of  the  Revolution 
— Letters  to  Perregaux— Return  to  France  .  .  .  Pages  17-62 


CHAPTER  II 
THE  PATRIOT 

Unrest  in  the  capital— The  National  Assembly — Theroigne's  en- 
thusiasm— In  the  gardens  of  the  Palais  Royal — The"roigne  adopts  the 
tricolour — The  taking  of  the  Bastille — The"roigne  goes  to  meet  the 
King — Provincial  riots — At  Versailles — New  Friends — The  march  of 
the  women — The  famous  5th  and  6th — The  Regiment  of  Flanders — 
The  gate  of  the  Orangery — Theroigne  declares  her  innocence — A 
demonstration  of  the  Rights  of  Man  ....  Pages  63-110 


CHAPTER   III 
THEROIGNE'S  CLUB 

Rise  of  the  political  club — The  diatribes  of  the  press — The  salons 
change  their  tone — Meetings  at  the  Hotel  de  Grenoble — Gilbert  Romme 
—  Th6roigne  plays  a  new  role  —  The  Club  de  la  Revolution — 
Theroigne  and  the  Actes  des  Apotres  and  other  journals — The  dame 
politique — The  orator — At  the  Club  des  Cordeliers — The"roigne  pro- 
poses a  resolution — Marching  with  the  deputies  .  .  Pages  111-152 

9 


IO  Contents 

CHAPTER   IV 
THE  CITOYENNES 

The  part  women  played  in  the  Revolution — Their  supporters — 
Women  in  the  clubs— Etta  Palm— Contrasted  with  Theroigne— 
Societes  Fraternelles  des  Deux  Sexes— The  provincial  clubs  devoted 
to  the  interests  of  women — The  frivolity  of  certain  members — "  Long 
live  women  patriots  !  "—The  youngest  citoyenne— A  typical  meeting. 

Pages  153-180 

CHAPTER   V 
FLIGHT  AND  CAPTURE 

Theroigne  leaves  Paris — Her  reasons  for  this  step — The  decree  of 
the  Chatelet— Had  she  a  mission  in  Brabant? — From  Saint-Hubert 
to  Marcourt— At  the  White  Cross  Inn,  La  Boverie— Van  der  Noot — 
Arrest — The  journey  to  the  Tyrol  ....  Pages  181-214 


CHAPTER  VI 

KUFSTEIN 

"  Madame  Theobald  "  is  led  to  her  cell — An  inventory — A  piano  in 
prison — The  examining  magistrate — Inquiry  into  her  conduct  on 
October  6th,  1789 — The  Dires  et  Aveux — A  surreptitious  letter — 
Family  affairs — The  Baron  de  Selys — A  defender  of  monarchs — The 
diamond  necklace — A  dramatic  interview — The  doctor's  report — Fare- 
well to  Kufstein — Vienna — The  Emperor's  clemency — Before  the 
judge— Liberty Pages  217-258 


CHAPTER   VII 

TO  ARMS!    TO  ARMS! 

The  tide  of  the  Revolution — Events  of  1790  and  1791 — Federation 
and  emigration — The  siege  of  Bellevue — A  triumphant  reception — 
Theroigne's  discourse  at  the  Jacobins  Club — Her  militant  attitude — 
Military  ardour  of  Frenchwomen— Provincial  regiments — Appeal  to  the 
legislators — Th6roigne  urges  women  to  arm  themselves— Her  adven- 
ture in  the  Faubourg  Saint-Antoine — A  patriotic  feast — "  Mile  The- 
roigne's boudoir" — Ch^teauvieux — Marie-Joseph  Chenier — An  imposing 
procession — Th6roigne  follows  the  Moderates  .  .  Pages  259-305 


Contents  1 1 

CHAPTER   VIII 
SULEAU 

The  demonstrations  of  June  2Oth — Where  was  Theroigne? — Planting 
the  Tree  of  Liberty — Nearing  the  crisis — August  loth — Theroigne 
incites  the  crowd  to  slaughter — In  the  guard-room  at  the  Feuillants — 
Suleau's  courage — His  death — Royalty  takes  refuge  in  the  Assembly — 
Attack  on  the  Tuileries — Theroigne  receives  a  civic  crown. 

Pages  306-322 

CHAPTER   IX 
BRISSOTINE 

Dr.  John  Moore  pays  a  visit  to  the  Jacobins— His  description  of 
Theroigne — The  September  massacres — Instability  of  parties — Did 
Theroigne  join  Dumouriez? — She  baffles  her  biographers  in  the  winter 
of  1792 — Her  appeal  to  the  Forty-eight  Sections — Her  last  effective 
action  in  the  cause  of  liberty — The  women  of  the  Convention — They 
encounter  Theroigne  and  assault  her — Her  escape — Various  accounts 
of  the  affair — Theroigne  as  seen  through  the  eyes  of  George  Forster. 

Pages  323-342 

CHAPTER  X 
LA  SALPETRIERE 

Fate  of  the  revolutionaries — Th6roigne's  arrest  and  detention — Her 
brother  intercedes  on  her  behalf — He  pleads  her  aberration  of  intellect 
— She  is  placed  in  an  asylum — Her  appeal  to  Saint-Just — At  the 
Salpetriere — Visions  in  her  mania — A  visitor  and  inquiries — Esquirol's 
description  of  her  condition — Her  death  .  .  .  Pages  343-355 


APPENDIX  A 

THEROIGNE  AND  THE  ROYALIST  PRESS 

Pages  357-362 

APPENDIX   B 

NOTES  ON   SOME  PORTRAITS  OF  THEROIGNE  DE 

MERICOURT  Page    363 

INDEX Pages  365-369 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

THEROIGNE.    (From  a  Portrait  at  the  Carnavalei)         Frontispiece 

PAGE 

THEROIGNE   DE   MERICOURT  .  .  .  .  .  -33 

JEROME   PETION 51 

THE    FALL   OF   THE   BASTILLE 69 

THE   MARCH    OF   THE   WOMEN   TO   VERSAILLES       ...         87 

THEROIGNE   DE   MERICOURT 105 

MARC-ETIENNE  POPULUS,   DEPUTY   FOR   BOURG-EN-BRESSE     .      123 

THEROIGNE   CONDUCTS    THE    ORCHESTRA    AT    THE    CLUB  DE 

LA   REVOLUTION 141 

GILBERT  ROMME 159 

THEROIGNE   DE   MERICOURT 177 


LEOPOLD   II.,    EMPEROR   OF   AUSTRIA 195 

13 


PAGE 


H  List  of  Illustrations 

THEROIGNE    DE   MERICOURT  .  .  .  .  .  .213 

THE  CALL   TO    ARMS,    1792.  .  .  .  .  .  .231 

MARIE-JOSEPH    CHENIER 249 

BRISSOT 267 

SAINT-JUST  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .      301 

THEROIGNE   AT   THE   SALPETRlfcRE 335 


LIST   OF   CHIEF   AUTHORITIES 

Actes  des  Apotres  (Les\  1789-91. 

Apocalypse  (ZJ),  1790. 

Aulard,  F.  A.     "  Histoire  Politique  de  la  Revolution  Frangaise." 

"  La  Societe  des  Jacobins." 
Aux  48  Sections.     [1792  ?J 
Beaulieu,  C.  F.  de.     "  Essais  Historiques,"  etc. 
Buchez  et   Roux.     "Histoire   Parlementaire   de   la  Revolution 

Franchise." 

Cabanes.     "  Les  Indiscretions  de  1'Histoire." 
Carlyle,  T.     "  French  Revolution." 
Demarteau.      "  fetude    sur  Th^roigne    de    Me"ricourt "    (Revue 

Historique). 
"Discours   prononce'   a  la  Societe   Fraternelle  des  Minimes  le 

25  Mars,  1792." 

Duval,  G.  L.  J.     "  Souvenirs  de  la  Terreur." 
Esquirol,  J.  E.  D.     "  Des  Maladies  mentales." 
Goncourt,  de.     "  Portraits  intimes  du  XVIII.  siecle." 
Intermldiaire  des  Chercheurs  (Z}). 
Lacour,  L.     "  Trois  Femmes  de  la  Revolution." 
Lairtullier,  E.     "  Les  Femmes  Celebres  de  1789  a  1795." 
Lamartine.     "  L'Histoire  du  Girondins." 
Michelet,  J.     "  Les  Femmes  de  la  Revolution." 
Momteur  (Le). 

Moore,  John.     "  A  Journal  during  a  Residence  in  France." 
Mortimer-Ternaux.     "Histoire  de  la  Terreur,  1792-4." 
Pellet,  M.     "  6tude  Historique  et  Biographique  sur  Theroigne 

de  Mericourt." 

Peltier,  J.  G.     "  Histoire  de  la  Revolution  du  dix  Aout,  1792." 
Reiset,   M.  A.  de.    "La  Vraie  Theroigne  de  Mericourt."     (Le 

Carnet,  1903.) 

15 


1 6  List  of  Chief  Authorities 

Strobl-Ravelsburg,  F.  de.     "Les  Confessions  de  Theroigne  de 

Mericourt." 
Taine,  H.  A.     "  Les  Origines  de  la  France  contemporaine — La 

Revolution." 
"  Theroigne  de  Mericourt  .  .  . :  Correspondance  publiee  par  le 

Vicomte  de  V y."     (By  Lamothe-Langon.) 

11  The'roigne  et  Populus  .  .  . :  Drame  Nationale."     ("  Precis  .  .  . 

sur  la  vie  de  Mile  Teroigne  de  Mericour.") 
Thiers,  L.  A.     "  Histoire  de  la  Revolution  Franchise." 
Tourneux.     "  Bibliographic  de   1'Histoire  de  Paris   pendant   la 

Revolution  Franchise." 
Villiers,   Marc   de.      "Histoire   des   Clubs   de   Femmes   et  de 

Legions  d'Amazones,  1793-1848-1871." 
Villiers,  P.     "  Souvenirs  d'un  Deporte." 
Vissac,  M.  de.     "Un  Conventionnel  du  Puy-de-D6me.     Romme 

le  Montagnard." 
Vitu,  A.  C.  J.     "  Etudes  Litteraires."     (Suleau,  Francis.) 

And  other  contemporary  journals,  pamphlets,  etc.,  mentioned 
in  the  text. 


A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 
Theroigne  de  Mericourt 


THE   PEASANT  ''"'  : 

A  JOURNEY  by  post-chaise  through  the  Ardennes 
was  at  all  seasons  a  laborious  undertaking  in  the 
eighteenth  century.  Only  the  most  determined  travel- 
lers cared  to  attempt  it  when  the  hilly  forest  roads  were 
rendered  almost  impassable  by  snow  and  ice.  In  the 
February  of  1791  two  purposeful  gentlemen  were 
making  their  way  in  wintry  weather  towards  the  frontiers 
of  Luxemburg.  They  were  French  Mgres,  although 
nothing  in  their  appearance  proclaimed  this  fact.  They 
preferred  to  be  on  Austrian  soil.  On  the  evening  of 
the  fifteenth  of  the  month  they  reached  Li6ge,  but  the 
urgency  of  their  expedition  made  it  impossible  for 
them  to  halt,  in  spite  of  fatigue  and  hunger,  and  they 
pushed  on  half  a  league  farther  to  the  little  village  of 
La  Boverie.  Their  mission  demanded  secrecy.  Leav- 
ing the  carriage,  they  proceeded  on  foot  to  the  straggling 
cottages  which,  together  with  the  little  church  and  a 
single  inn,  composed  the  village.  The  inn  was  their 
destination;  it  bore  the  sign  of  the  "White  Cross.  " 
Midnight  had  already  struck,  but  the  travellers  did  not 
2  '7 


1  8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

approach  the  house  until  the  night-watchman  had  gone 
his  rounds  and  all  was  silent.  Then  they  knocked  at 
the  door. 

"  Who  is  there  ?  "  inquired  some  one  within. 

"  Open  in  the  name  of  his  Imperial  Majesty,"  was 
the  command. 

A  frightened  innkeeper  admitted  the  strangers. 

"  You  have  a  lady  staying  here  ?     Show  us  to  her 


The  'jnn^eepeVs.  hesitation  vanished  at  a  threat. 
Uncer^rnibiiiousiy.tn^  '.strangers  entered  the  apartment 
he  indicated.  Within  all  was  silent  save  for  the 
regular  breathing  of  a  woman  asleep. 

The  noise  had  not  awakened  her,  but  when  a  torch 
was  brought  in  the  light  made  her  open  her  eyes. 
Seeing  two  strange  men  in  her  room,  she  sat  up  in  bed 
and  asked  them  to  account  for  their  presence  there. 

<c  I  do  not  know  you,  gentlemen,"  she  began. 
"  What  do  you  want  with  me  ?  It  is  odious  to  disturb 
people  at  this  time  of  night." 

One  of  the  intruders  answered  courteously  enough  : 
a  I  am  commissioned  by  the  Emperor,  mademoiselle, 
to  remove  you  to  a  place  of  safety.  Dress  yourself 
and  follow  us." 

The  young  woman  was  not  satisfied  with  this  reply. 
She  asked  for  more  particulars. 

"  You  have  enemies,  mademoiselle.  Your  life  is  in 
danger.  Your  whereabouts  have  been  traced.  Those 
are  coming  who  would  capture  you.  You  must  flee, 
and  at  once.  We  will  protect  you." 

"  You  !  By  what  right  do  you  constitute  yourselves 
my  protectors  ?  " 


The  Peasant  19 

"  By  the  right  of  friendship,  pretty  one.  By  the 
right  of  nationality.  Being  Austrians  we  desire  to 
guard  you  against  your  enemies  the  French  aristocrats." 

In  the  meantime  the  speaker's  companion  made  a 
thorough  search  of  the  room.  Clothes,  books,  letters — 
all  the  occupant's  personal  belongings,  in  short — were 
heaped  together  ready  for  removal. 

Helpless  and  bewildered,  the  young  woman  could 
do  nothing  to  prevent  this  ruthless  handling  of  her 
property.  Her  mild  protests  were  unheeded.  She 
was  told  that  her  papers,  if  they  were  left  behind, 
would  lead  to  her  capture. 

When  she  was  dressed  and  had  eaten  some  food, 
which  was  hurriedly  put  before  her,  she  was  taken 
to  the  carriage. 

"  But  of  what  could  my  worst  enemies  accuse 
me  ? "  she  asked  when  told  to  take  her  place  in  the 
vehicle. 

"Of  a  very  serious  crime — of  being  implicated  in  a 
plot  to  kill  the  Queen  of  France." 

"  It  is  a  lie.  I  know  nothing  about  it.  All  I  know 
is  that  the  people  hate  the  Queen." 

"Why?" 

"  For  one  thing,  she  is  Austrian — a  foreigner.  She 
does  not  understand  the  people's  needs.  Besides,  the 

Austrians "  and  then,  remembering  her  companions 

had  claimed  to  be  of  that  nationality,  she  lapsed 
discreetly  into  silence. 

A  passing  suspicion  grew  into  a  certainty.  Her 
companions'  off-hand  manners  had  already  given  her 
food  for  reflection,  and  she  realised  very  soon  that  her 
supposed  friends  were  nothing  of  the  kind.  They 


20  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

were  her  captors,  and  in  calling  themselves  Austrians 
they  had  misrepresented  the  truth. 

In  due  course  the  ill-assorted  travellers  reached 
Coblenz,  where  Metternich,  the  famous  father  of  a 
more  famous  son,  was  then  staying.  This  Austrian 
minister  had  French  sympathies  and  was  disposed  to  be 
friendly  to  the  little  colony  of  emigres  settled  in  that 
town. 

The  day  after  their  arrival  the  two  men  asked  for 
an  audience  with  the  minister,  and  informed  him  of 
what  they  had  done. 

"  I  congratulate  you,  gentlemen,"  replied  Metternich 
when  he  heard  their  story,  "  but  your  work  is  not  yet 
finished.  You  must  conduct  the  prisoner  to  Freiburg 
in  Breisgau." 

These  instructions  were  obeyed.  They  were 
followed  by  others,  stating  that  the  captive  was  to  be 
conveyed  to  the  fortress  of  Kufstein.  On  March 
i  yth,  under  the  name  of  Mme  Theobald,  she  was 
received  there  by  the  governor  himself.  She  had  lost 
her  last  chance  of  escape. 

Two  months  passed.  Then  one  day  a  carriage 
drawn  by  four  horses  dashed  up  to  the  prison  gates 
and  out  stepped  an  examining  magistrate. 

"  How  is  Mme  Theobald  ?  "  was  his  first  question. 

u  She  is  only  fairly  well,"  was  the  reply. 

Before  long  the  new-comer  was  taken  to  the 
prisoner's  cell.  He  was  surprised  by  her  charm  and 
youthful  appearance.  The  purpose  of  his  visit  was 
to  hear  her  life-history  from  her  own  lips.  With  a 
wave  of  the  hand  he  dismissed  the  jailer  who  had 
accompanied  him,  and  was  left  alone  with  the  prisoner. 


The  Peasant  21 

Fixing  his  steady  gaze  upon  her,  he  said,  "  You  are 
Mile  Theroigne  de  M£ricourt,  are  you  not  ?  " 
"  Yes,  I  am  she,"  replied  the  prisoner  simply. 

The  story  she  told,  supplemented  from  other 
sources,  some  more,  some  less  reliable,  was  full  of 
strange  vicissitudes,  of  ups  and  downs  in  fortune,  of 
struggles  and  of  aspirations — the  story  of  a  waif  and 
stray  of  lowly  birth,  who  was  carried  by  forces  stronger 
than  herself  amidst  scenes  of  bloodshed  and  horror 
into  which  were  drawn  at  the  same  time  the  very 
highest  in  the  land  of  France. 

Born  on  August  I3th,  1762,  at  Marcourt  on  the 
Ourthe,  in  the  province  of  Luxemburg,  some  forty 
miles  from  Liege,  Anne-Josephe  was  the  daughter  of 
Pierre  Terwaine  or  Terwagne  and  his  wife  Elisabeth 
Lahaye.  Terwagne  became  the  more  euphonious 
Theroigne  in  French,  and  Anne-Josephe  added  de 
Mericourt  from  the  name  of  the  village  where  she 
was  born — a  name,  she  said,  for  which  she  had  never 
had  cause  to  blush.  Some  biographers  have  called 
her  Lambertine,  but  there  appears  to  be  no  authority 
for  this  appellation,  nor  was  it  a  recognised  nickname. 

Anne-Josephe  was  the  eldest  of  the  family  and  was 
born  a  year  after  the  marriage  of  her  parents.  She 
had  two  brothers  ;  Pierre-Joseph,  born  on  December 
25th,  1764,  and  Joseph  on  September  28th,  1767. 
Three  months  later  Mme  Terwagne  died,  and,  after 
being  a  widower  for  six  years,  her  husband  married 
again  and  reared  a  second  family  of  nine  children,  the 
eldest  of  whom  was  born  in  1774. 

Terwagne  was  a  well-to-do  peasant,  but  he  engaged 


22  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

in  lawsuits  and  unsuccessful  speculations,  and  his 
affairs  became  so  much  involved  that  he  had  to  mort- 
gage or  sell  his  land. 

When  Anne-Josephe  was  left  motherless  she  went 
to  stay  with  an  aunt  at  Liege.  There  she  was  sent 
to  a  convent  school,  and  learnt  to  sew.  She  made  her 
first  communion  about  this  time.  After  she  had  been 
at  school  for  a  year  her  aunt  married,  and  refused  to 
pay  any  more  school  fees.  She  made  her  niece  work 
in  the  house,  and  turned  her  into  a  domestic  drudge. 
Presently  she  was  set  to  mind  the  children.  Anne- 
Jos&phe  fled  from  Li£ge  back  to  her  father's  house, 
only  to  find  that  her  new  stepmother  treated  her  no 
better  than  her  aunt  had  done.  Then  she  and  her 
two  brothers  fled  from  the  paternal  roof. 

The  elder  of  the  boys  went  to  Germany,  and  stayed 
with  relatives  of  the  name  of  Campinados.  This  name 
is  worth  noting,  because  Mile  Theroigne  admitted 
that  she  presently  assumed  it  herself.  Her  younger 
brother  accompanied  her  to  Xhoris,  in  the  principality 
of  Stavelot,  now  in  the  province  of  Liege,  to  stay 
with  connections  of  her  father's.  Here,  too,  her  lines 
seemed  to  have  fallen  in  unpleasant  places.  She  was 
now  thirteen  years  old,  and  was  forced  to  work  very 
hard,  harder  almost  than  her  strength  allowed  ;  nor 
did  she  find  compensation  in  the  affection  of  her 
relatives.  Feeling  life  to  be  unendurable,  she  returned 
to  her  aunt's  house  at  Liege,  but  was  treated  there  no 
better  than  before.  Once  more  it  became  necessary  to 
make  a  fresh  start.  In  the  face  of  her  aunt's  protests, 
and  sacrificing  all  her  childish  possessions,  Theroigne 
escaped  from  the  conditions  she  found  insupportable 


The  Peasant  23 

and  went  to  Sougne,  in  the  province  of  Limburg, 
where  she  learnt  to  herd  cows.  In  this  humble  calling 
she  spent  a  year,  when,  actuated  once  more  by  the 
uncontrollable  restlessness  which  seems  to  have  been 
one  of  her  chief  characteristics,  she  went  back  to  Liege 
and  took  a  situation  as  a  seamstress.  Still  dissatisfied, 
she  begged  hospitality  of  another  aunt  of  the  name  of 
Clamend,  at  Xhoris.  But  no  sooner  had  she  arrived 
there  than  she  became  acquainted  with  a  strange  lady, 
who  apparently  took  a  fancy  to  her,  and  asked  her 
to  accompany  her  to  Antwerp  and  take  charge  of  her 
little  daughter.  Her  new  employer,  however,  did  not 
wish  to  pay  Theroigne's  expenses  from  Xhoris  to  Ant- 
werp. Th£roigne  appealed  to  her  aunt  Clamend,  who 
sided  with  the  girl's  grandmother  in  advising  her  not 
to  travel  so  far  with  a  lady  about  whom  she  knew 
nothing.  TheVoigne  insisted,  and  won  the  day,  her 
aunt  finally  contributing  towards  the  travelling  ex- 
penses. Some  weeks  later  Mile  Theroigne's  new 
mistress  abandoned  her  at  the  inn  where  they  had 
been  staying  in  Antwerp,  and  she  might  have  been 
left  destitute  had  it  not  been  for  an  English  lady  at 
the  same  place,  a  certain  Mme  Colbert,  who  interested 
herself  in  the  girl's  forlorn  position  and  engaged  her 
as  a  companion  and  governess  to  her  children. 

Theroigne  was  now  sixteen.  She  had  more  charm 
than  actual  beauty.  She  was  well  grown,  but  not 
tall,  with  bright  eyes  and  chestnut-coloured  hair,  rosy 
cheeks,  and  a  wonderful  vivacity  that  seemed  in- 
exhaustible. Never  for  a  moment  was  she  dull  or 
inactive.  When  she  was  happy  she  blossomed  like 
a  flower  on  which  the  sun  shines.  There  was  a 


24  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

sparkle    in    her    eyes,    alertness    in    every    change    of 
expression,    and    life    in    every     gesture.     She    often 
hummed  at  her  work,  and  she  spoke  at  this  time  in 
the  language   of  the  Walloon   peasants,  which,  crude 
as   it  may   be,   sounded  like  music  when  uttered  by 
her  tuneful  voice.     There  was   harmony  and  a  sense 
of  completeness  about  Th£roigne  which  made  it  diffi- 
cult to   remember  that   she  was  only  an   uneducated 
girl  of  the  lower  classes.     Concerning  the  extent  of 
her  knowledge  at  this  period  it  is  difficult  to  discover 
anything  definite.     The  most  that  can  be  said  is  that 
she  possessed  an  insatiable  love  of  learning.     She  had 
been  for  a  short  while  in  a  convent  school,  but  the 
fact  that  she  had   moved  from   place  to   place  in  her 
youth   made  it  impossible  that  she  should  have  had 
much  opportunity  of  study.     Her  letters,  even  of  later 
years,  are  not  the  letters  of  a  well-taught  individual  ; 
but  many  of  the  best-trained  women  of  that  day  dis- 
closed the  same  faults  in  writing.     She  confessed  that 
when  a   young   woman    she    was   very  ignorant,   and 
could  hardly  read  or  write  ;   but   this  admission  was 
made  under  examination   in    prison,   when   it  was  to 
her  advantage  to  feign  to  be  illiterate.     The  appoint- 
ment of  governess  which  she  claimed   to  have  filled 
is  no  guide  as  to  her  own  attainments,  as  her  teaching, 
if  it  existed  at  all,  was  probably  most  elementary.     But 
any  one  who  knew  the  value  of  education  as  Theroigne 
did — for  she  continually  exhorted  her  brothers  to  make 
the  most  of  their  chances,  even  at  the  cost  of  work- 
ing all  night  long — was  bound  to  make  the  best  of 
her  many  opportunities  of  acquiring  information.     She 
was  soon  to  travel,  to  live  in  luxury  in  several  of  the 


The  Peasant  25 

capitals  of  Europe,  to  study  operatic  singing,  to  con- 
sort with  well-informed  men,  to  acquire  books  and 
music,  and  to  gather  experience  from  the  wide  field 
of  human  struggles  and  human  sorrows  ;  so  that,  taking 
into  account  a  natural  aptitude  for  assimilating  know- 
ledge, Theroigne  cannot  be  regarded  as  ignorant  or 
stupid,  although  she  was  by  no  means  brilliant  intel- 
lectually. 

Her  benefactress,  Mme  Colbert,  was  the  first  to 
discover  her  genuine  musical  talent,  and  to  turn  it 
to  account  by  allowing  her  to  train  her  voice.  For 
four  years  Theroigne  remained  in  the  household  of 
this  lady,  who  treated  her  kindly.  During  that  period 
they  stayed  at  Ghent,  Malines,  and  Brussels,  and  from 
there  they  travelled  to  London.  All  this  time 
Theroigne's  relatives  had  no  idea  of  her  whereabouts, 
and  she  gave  as  an  excuse  for  not  writing  to  tell  them 
her  ignorance  of  this  ordinary  accomplishment.  But 
the  truth  was  probably  a  little  more  complex.  We 
have  only  Theroigne's  own  word  to  go  upon  as  to 
the  way  in  which  the  years  of  her  early  womanhood 
were  spent.  She  did  not  wish  to  divulge  anything 
that  happened  to  her,  for  very  obvious  reasons. 

In  London  a  foretaste  of  romance  came  into  her 
life.  A  rich  young  Englishman  who  visited  Mme 
Colbert's  house  began  paying  court  to  her  in  a  manner 
she  felt  to  be  honest  and,  at  the  same  time,  delicate. 
He  was  good-looking,  persuasive,  apparently  in 
earnest,  and  he  uttered  words  of  passionate  love  to 
this  charming  untutored  girl  of  twenty.  Realising  the 
difference  in  their  positions,  Mme  de  Colbert,  who 
took  a  motherly  interest  in  Theroigne,  warned  her  to 


26  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

be  on  her  guard,  and  finally,  when  the  young  man 
insisted  on  continuing  his  importunities,  she  forbade 
him  the  house.  But  he  never  ceased  to  write  passionate 
love-letters  to  the  object  of  his  adoration — Theroigne 
does  not  say  that  she  was  unable  to  read  these — and 
he  walked  up  and  down  outside  the  house  for  hours 
in  the  hope  of  catching  a  glimpse  of  the  woman  who 
had  fascinated  him.  Theroigne  followed  the  wise 
counsels  which  had  been  given  her,  and  sent  back  his 
letters  with  a  message  that  he  must  write  to  her  no 
more.  She  confessed  artlessly  that  it  would  have  hurt 
her  terribly  if  he  had  obeyed.  For  a  whole  year  his 
attentions  in  no  way  relaxed,  and  his  constancy 
inspired  in  her  a  love  as  keen  as  his  own. 

One  evening  Mme  Colbert  was  out.  The  young 
man  made  his  way  into  the  house,  and  with  passionate 
insistence  begged  Theroigne  to  elope  with  him.  At 
first  she  protested,  but  he  would  not  take  her  refusals, 
and  continued  to  make  advances  which  she  found  it 
difficult  to  repel.  She  was  on  the  point  of  screaming 
for  help,  when  he  put  his  hand  over  her  mouth  to 
silence  her,  and  carried  her  off  by  main  force  to  the 
carriage  which  he  had  waiting.  Theroigne  spoils  this 
dramatic  account  of  her  abduction  by  adding  that  his 
promises  sounded  sincere,  and  her  affection  for  him 
stifled  her  prudence.  She  was  not  an  entirely  un- 
willing victim  therefore.  Her  chief  sentiment  appears 
to  have  been  a  feeling  of  regret  at  leaving  her  pro- 
tectress in  this  unexpected  and  seemingly  ungrateful 
manner. 

The  eloping  couple,  according  to  Th£roigne's 
account,  went  to  live  upon  the  young  man's  estate 


The  Peasant  27 

near  London,  where  they  were  to  have  been  married. 
Her  abductor  was  not  of  age,  and  how  he  came  to 
have  an  estate  of  his  own  is  not  explained.  At  any 
rate,  he  was  expecting  soon  to  be  in  possession  of  a 
considerable  fortune.  He  thought  the  wise  course  to 
take  was  to  wait  until  he  had  inherited  his  money 
before  entering  into  a  marriage  with  a  penniless  bride 
of  no  family  without  his  parents*  consent,  feeling 
certain  that  such  a  step  would  meet  with  their  entire 
disapproval.  Theroigne  admits  in  her  rather  confused 
narrative  that,  had  she  wished  it,  she  was  sure  he 
would  have  married  her  then  and  there  in  spite  of 
everything.  She  preferred  to  wait,  so  that  he  should 
not  risk  the  loss  of  his  fortune. 

When  at  length  they  were  in  possession  of  the 
money  it  brought  them  no  happiness.  Theroigne's 
lover  turned  out  to  be  a  spendthrift.  He  took  her 
to  Paris,  and  there  lavished  his  money  on  luxury  and 
vice.  Theroigne  did  her  best  to  check  this  taste  for 
excess,  but  was  unable  to  arrest  his  downward  career. 
Feeling  certain  that  it  was  impossible  to  hope  for  her 
lover's  reform  as  long  as  he  remained  among  his  boon 
companions  in  Paris,  she  did  everything  she  could  to 
persuade  him  to  return  to  England.  At  last  he  agreed 
to  this  plan. 

"  If,"  says  Mile  Theroigne  naively,  "  I  had  married 
my  lover  when  we  were  back  in  England  we  might  very 
easily  have  remained  happy  until  this  -day."  But 
vice  had  eaten  into  his  heart.  He  no  longer  cared 
for  the  simple  joys  of  the  country.  He  returned  to 
London,  and  left  his  mistress  behind.  She,  feeling 
assured  that  it  would  not  be  for  her  happiness  to 


28  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

bind  her  life  irretrievably  to  that  of  this  dissolute 
young  man,  decided  to  flee  from  him.  This  she 
did,  not  without  much  grief,  for  she  still  loved  him. 
It  was  the  year  1787. 

Her  lover  had  behaved  very  generously  to  her. 
She  was  now  in  possession  of  a  sum  of  two  hundred 
thousand  livres.  She  placed  forty  or  fifty  thousand 
livres,  according  to  her  own  statement,  out  at  interest 
in  the  hands  of  a  friend. 

There  is  probably  a  great  deal  of  truth  in  this 
version  of  Theroigne's  lapse  from  the  path  of  strict 
virtue,  yet  it  must  be  accepted  with  caution.  Was 
the  young  Englishman  of  wealth  and  position  her 
first  lover  ?  He  was  not  her  only  lover.  Another 
story  which  bears  as  little  guarantee  of  scrupulous 
accuracy  as  Th6roigne's  was  told  by  the  Baron  de 
Mengin-Salabert,  who  arrived  at  Kufstein  in  possession 
of  a  detailed  report  of  her  past  life  made  out  in 
connection  with  the  procedure  of  the  Chatelet  as  to 
her  doings  on  the  famous  5th  and  6th  of  October, 
1789. 

The  little  one,  when  about  thirteen  years  of  age, 
had  herded  cows,  said  the  clean-shaven,  powdered 
baron,  who  had  been  a  priest  until  the  Revolution 
had  deprived  him  of  his  living  and  sent  him  to  dwell 
in  the  Low  Countries.  Growing  weary  of  her  humble 
station,  and  feeling  within  her  the  power  to  rise  to 
a  very  different  sphere  of  life,  she  determined  to 
go  out  into  the  world  and  seek  her  fortune.  Her 
first  venture  was  in  domestic  service  at  Liege,  and 
this  position  was  not  likely  to  extinguish  the  fire  of 
her  ambition.  Quite  to  the  contrary,  declared  the 


The  Peasant  29 

facetious  baron — who  enjoyed  his  joke  more  than  was 
altogether  consistent  with  one  who  had  belonged  to 
the  priesthood — after  being  a  servant  she  felt  herself 
more  than  ever  capable  of  playing  the  role  of  mistress, 
and,  with  this  end  in  view,  she  made  the  acquaintance 
of  a  young  lawyer  in  the  town,  who  speedily  suc- 
cumbed to  her  fascination.  But  growing  weary  of 
the  arrangement  before  long,  she  looked  forward  to 
fresh  adventures,  and  in  this  chance  favoured  her. 

One  day  when  she  was  washing  linen  on  the 
banks  of  the  Meuse  she  began  to  sing.  A  romantic 
chronicler  gives  some  charming  details  of  her  appear- 
ance. She  was  wearing  a  short  striped  skirt,  and  the 
cambric  handkerchief  that  was  pinned  across  her 
shoulders  left  her  beautiful  white  neck  and  arms 
bare  ;  no  ugly  cap  hid  the  luxuriant  tresses  of  her 
hair,  which  were  loosely  tied  together  with  a  ribbon. 
Her  eyes  shone,  and  her  teeth  were  like  pearls.  She 
was  quite  alone.  Her  voice  was  peculiarly  attrac- 
tive. She  gave  utterance  to  a  melody  which  had  all 
the  charm  of  a  siren's  song.  As  the  last  notes  died 
away  she  became  aware  of  a  listener.  Standing  behind 
her  was  a  young  Englishman  "  with  a  form  like  An- 
tinous  and  the  head  of  Adonis."  Fascinated  and 
enchanted,  the  new-comer  was  not  long  in  remarking 
that  so  sweet  a  maiden  was  wasted  on  the  menial 
occupation  of  washing,  and  he  proposed  that  she 
should  leave  her  task  and  accompany  him  to  Spa. 

According  to  the  baron's  account,  Th£roigne  showed 
no  coyness,  nor  did  she  scruple  to  leave  one  protector 
for  another.  A  promise  that  her  musical  abilities 
should  be  developed  was  sufficient  to  make  her  throw 


30  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

caution  to  the  winds.  After  Spa,  the  Englishman 
took  her  to  London,  and  fulfilled  his  word  by  giving 
her  a  music-master. 

She  went  on  the  concert-platform  and  became  a 
successful  performer.  Abandoned  by  her  lover,  con- 
tinues the  baron,  she  lived  alone,  and  after  three  or 
four  years  spent  in  London  went  to  Italy. 

But  here  the  baron  went  too  fast.  His  zeal  had 
outstripped  his  knowledge.  He  might  have  dwelt 
more  carefully  on  the  identity  of  Theroigne's  music- 
master.  He  knew,  apparently,  nothing  of  the  visit 
to  Paris. 

Theroigne  had  said  very  little  about  the  stay  there, 
speaking  more  fully  of  her  return  to  London.  One 
indiscreet  word  she  had  let  fall,  however,  referring  to 
a  certain  individual  with  whom  she  had  had  financial 
dealings  in  the  French  capital. 

The  second  journey  to  London  had  been  arranged 
so  unexpectedly  that  she  had  not  had  time  to  sell  her 
furniture  or  to  rearrange  her  investments. 

"  We  left  suddenly,'*  she  says,  "  to  my  great  con- 
tentment, but  to  the  regret  of  my  friends,  especially 
the  one  who  managed  my  income  for  me,  and  who 
desired  to  keep  me  in  Paris." 

Questions  as  to  this  individual  being  forthcoming, 
she  was  obliged  to  confess,  a  little  reluctantly,  that 
the  gentleman  had  paid  her  attentions  which  had  not 
altogether  escaped  her  notice,  but  because  he  was 
elderly  she  believed  that  his  years  precluded  any  pos- 
sibility of  a  warmer  affection  for  her  than  might  safely 
have  been  indulged  in  by  an  uncle.  She  had  accepted 
his  u  more  than  sympathy  "  with  gratitude  and  a  sense 


The  Peasant  31 

of  absolute  security.  He  had  shown  his  affection  in 
a  manner  suitable  to  his  years  and  to  her  position 
and  tastes.  He  had  given  her  good  advice,  he  had 
had  a  say  in  the  matter  of  her  household  arrangements, 
and  he  wished  to  teach  her  French.  Nothing  could 
have  been  more  innocent.  "  From  time  to  time,"  she 
adds,  in  that  childlike  spirit  which  is  so  charming, 
"  I  found  presents  lying  on  my  toilet-table,  valuable 
presents,  without  my  being  able  to  guess  how  they 
came  to  be  there,  or  who  was  the  anonymous  donor." 

At  the  moment  of  leaving  Paris  she  discovered  all. 
The  old  gentleman  was  the  author  of  these  mysterious 
gifts. 

She  did  not  fail  to  impress  upon  her  examiners  the 
surprise  that  she  had  felt  when  she  knew  the  truth. 
<c  He  reproached  me  with  my  coldness,"  she  declares. 
"  I  confess  I  thought  it  very  ridiculous  that  he  dared 
to  speak  to  me  in  the  way  he  did.  The  whole  thing 
offended  me,  and  I  forced  him  to  take  back  all  his 
presents.  If  I  had  known  to  whom  to  send  them 
in  the  first  instance,  certainly  I  should  not  have  kept 
them  for  a  single  moment."  But  here  The>oigne 
would  have  done  better  to  spare  her  indignation  and 
her  hearers'  blushes.  She  implies  that  there  were  so 
many  possible  sources  from  which  the  presents  might 
have  come,  that  to  trace  their  origin  would  have  been 
no  easy  task. 

"  In  spite  of  my  honesty,"  she  continues  in  her 
"  Confessions,"  u  he  was  not  to  be  deterred  from 
writing  to  me  in  England  and  later  to  Italy  " — letters 
which  she  considered  most  unsuitable.  "  They  wounded 
me  to  the  last  degree,  and  I  made  him  aware  of  it. 


32  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Since  then  I  have  had  to  complain  of  this  man  on 
various  grounds.  ..." 

All  the  time  she  knew  that  several  of  the  letters 
were  in  evidence  against  her.  Her  judges,  after  read- 
ing them,  were  obliged  to  state  that  her  relations 
with  their  writer,  the  Marquis  de  Persan,  were  not 
to  be  dismissed  as  lightly  as  she  would  have  liked 
them  to  be. 

A  deed  was  in  existence  concerning  the  fifty  thousand 
livres  she  was  supposed  to  have  placed  in  the  care  of  the 
Marquis  at  an  interest  of  ten  per  cent.  It  was  dated 
April  2 ist,  1786,  and  worded  as  follows  : 

u  Anne  Nicolas  Doublet  de  Persan,  Chevalier, 
Marquis  de  Persan,  Comte  de  Dun  and  de  Pateau, 
acknowledges  his  liability  to  Demoiselle  Anne-Jos&phe 
Th£roigne,  minor,  living  in  the  Rue  de  Bourbon- 
Villeneuve,  to  the  extent  of  an  annuity  for  life  of 
five  thousand  livres  exempt  from  all  tax  or  deduction, 
payable  in  two  sums,  at  an  interval  of  six  months,  this 
arrangement  being  made  in  return  for  the  fifty  thousand 
livres  which  the  said  Marquis  de  Persan  acknowledges 
and  confesses  to  have  received  from  the  said  Demoiselle 
Th£roigne.  He  is  at  liberty  to  liquidate  the  debt  by 
returning  the  said  sum  to  her." 

Was  this  document  genuine,  or,  which  is  more 
probable,  was  it  a  method  invented  by  her  protector 
to  save  a  young  woman's  reputation  and  at  the  same 
time  ensure  her  a  good  income  ?  Theroigne  kept  up 
the  fiction  for  several  years.  She  declared  she  had 
amassed  her  little  fortune  in  England  and  only  in- 
vested it  in  Paris.  It  had  been  her  intention,  she  said, 
to  return  to  her  father's  house  under  an  assumed 


THEROIGNE    DE   MERICOURT. 
From  a  painting  attributed  to  Greuze. 
Reproduced  by  permission  ofBraim  Clement  et  Cie. 


33 


The  Peasant  35 

name,  explaining  that  she  was  a  widow  whose  husband 
had  left  her  well  provided  for.  She  was  prevented 
from  carrying  out  this  scheme  by  the  untimely  death 
of  her  father,  as  will  presently  appear.  Her  affairs 
were  in  the  hands  of  two  bankers.  One  in  London, 
a  Mr.  Hammersley  (she  spelt  it  Hammerslys),  was 
probably  a  partner  in  Messrs.  Ransom,  Morland  & 
Hammersley,  of  57,  Pall  Mall,  a  firm  connected  with 
musical  interests  who  received  subscriptions  for  operas 
and  concerts  at  that  time.  The  other  was  a  well- 
known  Paris  banker,  Perregaux  (whose  name  oddly 
enough  is  mixed  up  with  the  story  of  the  Queen's 
necklace),  to  whom  she  wrote  voluminous  letters, 
many  of  them  preserved. 

Whence  her  income  was  really  derived  it  is  difficult 
to  be  certain,  but  that  she  had  plenty  of  money  at 
this  period  of  her  life  and  enjoyed  spending  it  may 
be  regarded  as  convincing.  Both  in  London  and  in 
the  Rue  de  Bourbon-Villeneuve,  Paris,  she  led  a  life 
of  ease  and  pleasure  ;  frequenting  the  opera,  supping 
at  restaurants,  making  a  stir  wherever  she  went  on 
account  of  her  youth  and  beauty,  her  sparkling  eyes 
and  her  dazzling  diamonds,  her  pretence  of  modesty, 
which  revealed,  when  once  dispelled,  a  happy  confi- 
dence and  a  yielding  familiarity.  She  was  fresh  and 
lithe  and  charming,  and  her  reserve  melted  like  snow 
before  the  sun  of  wealth  and  kindness.  Her  musical 
talents  were  undeniable  and  they  won  success  both  in 
London  and  Paris.  It  was  said  that  she  sacrificed 
everything  for  notoriety,  for  triumph  on  the  concert- 
platform  ;  that  she  exercised  lavishly  her  power  to 
gather  laurels  and  inspire  violent  passions  ;  that  she 
3 


3  6  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

desired  to  illumine  all  the  gatherings  she  honoured 
by  her  presence  as  though  she  herself  were  their 
centre,  their  brilliant  sun.  Her  grace,  her  originality, 
the  play  of  her  mobile  features,  her  coquetry,  taste, 
and  elocution  were  gifts  which  ensured  the  achieve- 
ment of  her  aims.  "  Persons  who  like  myself  used  to 
frequent  the  theatres  and  public  places  of  entertainment 
bef9re  1789,"  wrote  Comte  Thomas  d'Espinchal  in 
his  "  Journal  de  Voyages  et  de  Faits  relatifs  a  la 
Revolution,"  "  can  remember  that  only  a  few  years 
previously  there  often  appeared  at  the  Opera,  and 
particularly  frequently  at  the  Concert  Spirituel,  alone 
in  a  large  box  a  fair  unknown  who  called  herself 
Mme  Campinados,  covered  with  diamonds,  having 
her  own  carriage,  coming  from  a  foreign  country, 
wearing  the  air  of  une  fille  entretenue,  but  giving  no 
account  of  the  resources  at  her  disposal.  This  was 
the  same  person  who,  after  the  Revolution,  appeared 
under  the  name  of  Mile  Theroigne  de  Mericourt." 
D'Espinchal,  who  accused  her  wrongfully  of  many 
excesses  and  even  atrocities,  described  her  as  little, 
not  very  pretty,  and  wearing  already  a  somewhat 
dissipated  air,  although,  he  said,  she  did  not  then 
show  signs  of  the  ferocious  character  she  exhibited 
later. 

If  it  were  indeed  to  M.  de  Persan  that  Theroigne 
owed  her  livelihood,  the  means  by  which  she  obtained 
her  musical  training,  her  luxuries  and  diamonds, 
it  can  only  be  admitted  that  she  appears  in  the 
worst  light  possible,  for  she  neither  loved  him,  nor 
did  she  apparently  show  the  least  gratitude  to  him 
for  all  he  gave  her.  The  Marquis  was  a  personage. 


The  Peasant  37 

Born  in  1728,  he  had  become  a  Councillor  of  the 
Parlement  of  Paris  at  the  age  of  twenty,  and  Maitre 
des  Requetes  in  1754.  He  married  a  Mile  Aymeret 
de  Gazeau  ;  and  at  the  time  he  knew  Theroigne,  when 
he  was  himself  nearly  sixty  years  old,  he  had  a  son 
over  thirty.  He  was  only  distantly  connected  with 
Mme  Doublet  de  Persan  of  salon  fame,  although 
inaccurate  biographers  made  him  out  to  be  her  son. 
During  the  continuance  of  the  strange  relationship 
between  marquis  and  peasant-maid — that  is  to  say,  for 
three  or  four  years — there  was  a  constant  struggle  for 
the  supremacy  of  the  love  of  the  former  over  the 
<c  demon  of  music "  possessed  by  the  latter.  But 
Theroigne  was  to  win  the  day,  and  de  Persan  was  left 
disconsolate  and  disillusioned.  Probably  their  liaison 
began  in  1785,  perhaps  in  1784,  and  before  1787  her 
affections,  if  she  ever  indulged  in  any  towards  him, 
had  wandered  elsewhere,  and  the  connection  was 
finally  broken  in  the  following  year.  His  letters  are 
full  of  reproaches,  and  he  condemns  her  for  not  having 
kept  to  her  bargain — such  a  bargain  as  any  courtesan 
might  have  made. 

"  You  are  right  in  saying  that  all  things  here  are  a 
matter  of  exchange,"  he  writes,  "  but  it  is  necessary 
that  it  should  be  a  fair  exchange.  You  know  that  my 
attachment  to  you  will  last  for  ever,  and  you  say  in 
response  that  the  feelings  you  have  for  me  will  be  as 
my  behaviour  merits.  There  is  no  equality  about  this. 
When  you  apparently  gave  yourself  to  me,  I  en- 
deavoured to  obtain  for  you  all  that  you  could  desire  ; 
even  going  beyond  my  means  to  do  so.  What  have  I 
had  in  return  ?  Often  harshness,  and  never  a  continu- 


3  8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

ance  of  the  affections  which  alone  give  happiness. 
Have  I  found  this  sweet  gentleness,  this  abandonment, 
this  confidence  that  a  man  who  loves  has  a  right  to 
expect  from  the  woman  who  is  attached  to  him  ?  " 
Another  time  he  writes  to  her  :  "  You  will  not  doubt 
that  it  will  be  a  pleasure  to  me  to  see  you,  especially 
if  you  will  treat  me  as  a  cherished  lover.  But  if  you 
put  on  airs  I  shall  be  miserable." 

At  the  end  of  October  1787,  about  a  month 
later,  he  reproaches  her  anew.  "  What  have  I  done, 
dear  one,  that  you  should  write  to  me  with  the 
coldness  which  is  apparent  from  your  last  two 
letters  ?  I  answered  you  with  sentiments  of  the 
most  sincere  attachment.  I  have  always  counted  on 
your  affection,  and  I  hope  that  you  do  not  mean  to 
give  me  cause  for  grief;  to  me  who  have  never 
caused  you  grief.  Have  I  not  always  done  what- 
ever you  wanted  ?  You  desire  to  part  from  me  ? 
You  wish  to  exploit  your  talent  and  woo  a  fortune? 
Your  mind  must  be  wandering  !  I  brought  you  to  a 
better  way  of  thinking,  and  you  agreed  with  me  when 
I  had  a  talk  with  you  some  time  ago.  You  made  me 
pay  a  year's  more  annuity  than  I  owed  you,  so  that 
you  might  be  furnished  with  all  you  required. 
Nevertheless  I  did  it. 

"  Grant  me  a  year  to  pay  off  the  remainder.  You 
might  very  easily  do  me  this  favour.  I  will  pay  you 
every  six  months,  including  the  interest,  and  your 
income  as  well.  Send  me  a  receipt  for  the  half-year  as 
a  sign  that  you  agree.  It  seems  to  me  that  I  merit 
this  mark  of  friendship. 

"  As  you  say  you  desire  to  part  from  me,  I  expect 


The  Peasant  39 

you  to  deal  me  this  blow,  although  I  can  hardly 
believe  that  you  will  wound  me  so  deeply,  for  I  confess 
to  you  that  if  I  saw  you  exploit  your  talents  and  go  on 
the  stage  you  would  be  destroying  the  good  opinion 
I  have  formed  of  you.  I  should  not  think  it  worthy 
of  you.  I  sacrificed  everything  to  hinder  you  from 
making  this  mistake  in  connection  with  David  two 
years  ago.  You  do  not  do  your  true  friends  justice. 
If  you  have  decided  not  to  return  to  France,  sell  me 
your  furniture.  I  ask  this  as  a  privilege.  You  will 
at  all  events  find  it  ready  for  you  if  you  return.  .  .  ." 
This  reference  to  Giacomo  David  or  Davide,  the 
great  Italian  tenor  usually  known  as  "  David  le  pere," 
is  significant.  He  was  probably  the  first  who  inspired 
Theroigne  with  a  wish  to  break  away  from  her 
amorous  old  protector,  the  Marquis  de  Persan. 

Born  at  Presezzo,  near  Bergamo,  in  1750,  David  was 
thirty-five  when  Theroigne  met  him  in  Paris  in  1785, 
whither  he  had  come  to  take  part  in  the  concerts 
spirituel  which  were  then  at  the  height  of  their  popu- 
larity. These  concerts,  which  had  become  quite  a 
musical  institution  in  France,  dated  from  the  early 
years  of  the  reign  of  Louis  XV.  They  were  held  in 
the  Salle  des  Suisses  of  the  Tuileries  on  the  occasion  of 
religious  festivals  when  the  Opera  House  was  closed  ; 
that  is  to  say,  not  more  than  twenty-four  times  in  the 
year.  Foreign  artists  usually  met  with  a  courteous 
and  often  an  enthusiastic  reception  there.  Among 
the  most  illustrious  who  sang  in  Paris  at  this  period 
were  Cafarelli,  Farinelli,  RafF,  Mme  Mara,  and  Davide. 
The  first  appearance  of  the  last-named  was  not  an 
unqualified  success,  owing,  it  was  said,  to  the  fact  that 


40  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  Parisian  public  was  not  then  accustomed  to  the  florid 
Italian  style.  But  at  least  he  won  one  devout  admirer. 
Possessed  by  the  dangerous  demon  of  music  already 
referred  to,  Th£roigne  was  suddenly  seized  by  the 
desire  to  follow  Davide  to  Italy  and  to  sing  with  him 
there.  Probably  the  musician,  flattered  as  he  may 
have  felt  by  the  girl's  evident  adoration,  was  too 
discreet  to  take  advantage  of  it.  It  is  fairly  obvious 
that  if  he  had  been  a  willing  partner  to  any  such 
arrangement,  no  powers  of  persuasion  exercised  by 
de  Persan  would  have  been  sufficient  to  prevent  the 
hot-headed  Theroigne's  "  mistake,"  even  at  the  cost  he 
mentions  of  "  sacrificing  everything."  It  is  far  more 
likely  that  Davide's  domestic  ties  were  too  binding  to 
permit  him  to  enter  into  any  compromising  connection 
with  a  woman,  however  beautiful.  He  was  rewarded 
for  his  discretion  in  the  person  of  his  talented  son 
Giovanni,  who  earned  for  his  father  and  teacher  the 
title  by  which  he  was  known  to  posterity. 

The  danger  from  an  attachment  to  Davide  once 
averted,  de  Persan  expected  to  recover  his  former 
influence  over  his  mistress.  In  this  he  was  mistaken. 
Her  submission  was  not  to  be  of  long  duration.  Self- 
willed,  impulsive,  whole-hearted  in  whatever  she  set 
out  to  do,  already  at  the  mercy  of  states  of  exaltation 
which  were  to  increase  when  fed  by  the  excitement 
of  the  Revolution,  Theroigne  soon  broke  loose  and 
followed  the  musical  tendencies  which  at  that  moment 
called  to  her  more  strongly  than  any  other  passion. 

She  describes  her  return  to  England,  but  as  regards 
her  life  there  all  is  conjecture.  In  his  letters  M.  de 
Persan  upbraids  her  for  her  callous  disregard  of  his 


The  Peasant  41 

wishes  that  she  should  remain  in  France.  Was  she 
with  a  lover,  as  she  declares  in  her  "  Confessions,"  or  was 
she  alone  ?  Was  she  secretly  married  ?  Why  should 
she  have  concealed  the  fact  ?  She  never  admitted 
having  had  a  daughter,  although  two  receipts  were 
brought  forward  at  her  examination  in  prison  which 
referred  to  expenses  connected  with  the  death  of  a  little 
girl  of  the  name  of  Frangoise-Louise,  otherwise  called 
Mile  Septenville,  the  daughter  of  Mile  Anne-Josephe 
Theroigne,  or  Campinados.  The  documents  are  dated 
respectively  April  i8th  and  I9th,  1788,  and  refer 
to  sums  of  sixty-seven  livres  for  a  doctor  of  the 
name  of  Cervenon  at  Paris,  and  three  hundred  and 
sixty  livres  for  board  and  other  expenses  connected 
with  illness  to  one  called  Kertzen.  Not  a  word  is 
there  as  to  the  child's  age,  nor  a  clue  as  to  its  father. 

One  thing  at  least  is  certain  with  regard  to  her  visit 
to  England.  She  thought  of  increasing  her  means  by 
singing  at  concerts,  and  in  trying  to  find  the  best  music- 
master  in  London  she  fell  into  the  clutches  of  the 
notorious  Tenducci,  with  whom  she  was  presently  to 
sign  a  curious  agreement. 

Tenducci's  career  in  the  United  Kingdom  had  been 
chequered  by  strange  adventures.  He  was  born  in 
1736,  at  Siena,  and  in  his  youth  steps  had  been  taken 
to  render  his  voice  of  a  peculiar  quality  and  timbre — 
a  custom  which  was  usual  among  opera-singers  in  Italy 
of  that  date,  and  which  survived  in  the  choir  of  the 
Sistine  Chapel  until  the  middle  of  the  last  century. 
About  1760  Tenducci  left  Italy  for  England,  where  he 
speedily  gained  a  vast  reputation  as  a  singer  at  Covent 
Garden  and  elsewhere.  He  was  associated  with  the 


\ 

42  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

celebrated  Dr.  Arne,  and  took  part  with  Peretti  and 
Miss  Brent  in  this  composer's  opera,  drtaxerxes.  In 
1764  Walpole  heard  Tenducci  in  London,  and  described 
him  as  a  a  moderate  tenor."  Not  long  after  this  the 
singer  went  to  Ireland,  where  he  disgraced  himself  by 
abducting  a  young  heiress.  Villiers  tells  the  story,  more 
or  less  accurately,  in  his  c<  Souvenirs  d'un  Deporte  " : 
"  Tenducci,  the  Italian  singer,  proud  of  his  successes 
at  the  concerts  spirituel  in  Paris,  came  to  London,  and 
from  thence  went  to  Ireland,  where,  in  spite  of  his 
hideous  face,  this  new  Abelard  managed  to  please  a 
young  heiress  and  elope  with  her.  This  event,  which 
made  a  great  deal  of  noise,  was  the  occasion  for  a  law- 
suit which  for  many  years  kept  all  England  interested 
and  amused,  and  almost  ended  in  the  hanging  of 
Tenducci.  The  laws  of  the  country  making  no  refer- 
ence to  the  condition  of  the  singer,  the  judges  were 
greatly  embarrassed.  Tenducci  maintained  that  no 
law  prevented  him  from  contracting  a  legitimate 
marriage.  Everything  was  arranged,  however.  The 
young  Irishwoman  was  returned  to  her  family  a  virgin, 
and  Tenducci  was  set  free  from  prison  to  go  back  to 
the  stage." 

The  other  side  of  the  story  appears  in  a  document 
printed  in  1768  by  Mrs.  Dora  Tenducci,  which  she 
entitles  "  A  true  and  genuine  narrative  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Tenducci  in  a  letter  to  a  friend  at  Bath,  giving  a 
full  account  from  their  marriage  in  Ireland  to  the 
present  time."  This  pamphlet  appears  to  be  a  true 
account  of  the  persecutions  which  attended  the  rash 
elopement.  Tenducci  was  seized  and  cast  into  prison 
at  Cork,  Dora  was  captured  and  kept  in  confinement 


The  Peasant  43 

by  relatives   who  brutally   ill-treated  her.     It  appears 

that  the  lovers  had  met  frequently  at  a  friend's  house 

near  Dublin,  that  Dora's  love  of  music  had  been  the 

cause  of  the  original  friendship,  that  her  parents  had 

invited  the  tenor  to  their  house,  and  that  he  had  given 

her  lessons  in  singing  without  taking  any  fees.     This 

point  was  of  technical   importance  in  the   case,  for  it 

was  endeavoured  to  prove  against  Tenducci  that  he  had 

abducted  a  pupil.     The  defence  was  that  the  young 

lady  had  married    him  entirely  of  her  own  free  will. 

In    the    Public  Advertiser  for  September    i6th,   1766, 

a   note  occurs  in    the   Irish   news   to    the    effect    that 

<c  Mr.  Tenducci  desires,  by  a  letter  from  his  confinement, 

as  an  act  of  justice,  to  contradict  the  mention  of  his 

having   been   a   tutor   to    the   young   lady   whom    he 

married."     The  tenor  went  so  far  as  to  state  that  he 

never  was   entertained  as  a  singing-  or  music-master 

by  any  person  or  persons  since  he  had  performed  in 

the  kingdom,  had  never  taught  the  art  of  singing,  and 

consequently    had    never    had   a  pupil.     Nor   was  he 

received   by   the   friends  of  the    young    lady — whose 

name    he    would    not   mention    but    with    the  utmost 

respect — on  any  such  footing. 

The  persecution  of  the  young  wedded  couple  went 
on  for  a  year.  Tenducci  was  a  spendthrift  and  con- 
tinually in  debt,  which  fact  greatly  aggravated  the 
audacity  of  his  attempt  to  carry  off  an  heiress.  At 
length  Dora's  father  ceased  to  oppose  the  match. 
The  young  wife's  narrative,  which  had  ended  in 
August  1767,  received  an  additional  note  by  September 
that  a  remarriage  had  taken  place  and  that  she  was 
allowed  to  remain  with  her  husband  in  a  chosen  retreat. 


44  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Another  version  of  this  curious  episode  is  to  be 
found  in  the  Morning  Post  for  June  i6th,  1781,  under 
the  title  of  "Authentic  Anecdotes  of  the  celebrated 
Tenducci."  The  Journal  states  that  "  about  fourteen 
years  ago  this  remarkable  character  visited  Ireland, 
and  from  his  acknowledged  capacity  in  the  science  of 
music,  added  to  a  natural  pleasantry  in  his  disposition, 
which  suited  the  temper  of  the  natives,  he  soon  became 
a  favourite.  The  females  of  lerne  are  not  proof 
against  those  tender  sensations  created  by  c  concord 
of  sweet  sounds '  ;  and  Tenducci  was  so  unfortunate 
as  to  be  the  object  of  a  lady's  affections,  who  was 
beautiful  in  person,  elegant  in  her  manners,  a  perfect 
proficient  in  music,  and  descended  from  an  ancestry 
both  antient  and  respectable.  After  some  tender, 
stolen  interviews  on  the  subject  of  Almighty  Love, 
an  honourable  union  was  agreed  upon,  and  Cupid 
conducted  the  fair  native  of  Hibernia  to  a  neighbour- 
ing priest,  who  joined  her  in  wedlock  to  this  son  of 
Romulus.  It  is  thought  the  pages  of  romantic  love 
do  not  furnish  such  another  instance  of  persecution 
as  Tenducci  suffered  in  Ireland,  in  consequence  of 
this  connexion  ;  but  it  had  no  other  effect  upon  the 
fond  couple,  at  that  time,  than  to  unite  them  still 
stronger  in  a  mutual  affection.  After  many  fruitless 
efforts  made  by  the  family  for  the  purpose  of 
separating  them,  it  was  agreed  that  they  should  leave 
the  kingdom  and  warble  their  woodnotes  in  some 
foreign  land  for  a  subsistance.  The  first  place  these 
celebrated  fugitives  visited  after  their  departure  was 
the  capital  of  Caledonia  ;  here  they  were  received 
with  open  arms.  Tenducci  was  remarkable  for 


The  Peasant  45 

singing  the  Scotch  music,  which,  it  is  acknowledged, 
reaches  the  heart  with  greater  force  than  the  com- 
positions of  any  other  nation  ;  and  his  bride  was  little 
inferior  to  him,  either  in  the  excellence  of  her  voice, 
or  the  elegance  of  her  taste.  They  continued  here 
for  some  time,  until  he  was  called  to  London  in 
consequence  of  an  engagement  at  the  Opera.  On 
the  expiration  of  his  agreement  with  the  Managers, 
they  changed  the  scene,  and  visited  Italy,  mutually 
participating  in  all  the  enjoyments  of  domestic  blandish- 
ment. But  alas,  who  can  command  a  life  of  happiness  ? 
The  lady,  as  she  advanced  in  years,  had  acquired  an 
experience  destructive  of  her  peace  ;  she  found  her- 
self uneasy,  and  would  sit  and  sigh  cthe  live  long 
night  away."  Tenducci  grew  fatigued  in  his  turn, 
and  a  separation  ensued  :  she  returned  to  England, 
and  shortly  after  an  application  was  made  to  the 
Conclave  at  Doctors'  Commons  for  a  divorce^  which 
was  obtained  to  the  satisfaction  of  both  parties.  On 
the  completion  of  this  business,  Tenducci  again  visited 
Britain  ;  and  so  devoted,  says  our  correspondent,  is  he 
to  Scotland,  that  he  goes  every  summer  to  Edinburgh  ; 
no  foreigner,  we  are  informed,  was  ever  so  hospitably 
received  in  that  country  as  Tenducci  ;  and  if  we 
are  not  very  much  deceived,  few  people  entertain  a 
more  grateful  sense  of  past  obligations  than  this 
disciple  of  Calliope." 

Tenducci  appears  on  the  scene  again  some  twenty 
years  later  in  his  connection  with  Theroigne,  who,  it  is  to 
be  hoped,  knew  nothing  of  the  manner  of  man  he  was. 
It  is  in  her  favour,  perhaps,  that  he  deceived  her  as  he 
had  done  many  other  women.  <c  In  spite  of  his  age  " 


46  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

(which  was  now  over  fifty),  continues  Villiers  in  his 
account,  "  his  ugliness,  and  his  still  more  hideous 
character,  .  .  .  Tenducci  doted  on  our  illustrious 
Comtesse  de  Campinados.  She  brought  him  back  to 
Paris  in  1788,  and  as  she  then  had  many  diamonds, 
much  silver  plate,  and  a  quantity  of  gold,  he  took 
possession  of  her,  refused  to  leave  her,  travelled  with 
her  to  Italy,  devoured  all  her  possessions,  and  died  at 
the  end  of  a  year. 

"  Mme  Theroigne  de  Mericourt,  having  nothing  else 
left,  returned  to  Paris,  where,  as  is  well  known,  she 
became  the  corypheus  of  Robespierre's  tricoteuses." 

Here  mistake  is  heaped  on  mistake.  Tenducci  did 
not  die  until  the  following  century,  and  Theroigne,  who 
was  not  absolutely  ruined  by  the  musician,  never  joined 
the  furies  of  the  guillotine. 

The  truth,  as  far  as  it  can  be  ascertained,  was  as 
follows.  In  1785,  whilst  Theroigne  was  still  presum- 
ably under  the  protection  of  the  Marquis  de  Persan, 
though  ready  to  leave  him  for  the  first  musician  or 
foreigner  with  musical  abilities  who  presented  himself, 
Tenducci  was  at  the  height  of  his  reputation  as  a 
teacher,  if  not  as  a  soloist,  in  London.  In  the  Morning 
Herald  and  Daily  Advertiser  for  July  2nd  of  that  year, 
it  may  be  seen  that  he  had  under  his  care  "  a  pupil 
who  promises  to  become  the  greatest  singer  that  ever 
was  in  this  country.'*  This  was  not  Theroigne,  but 
a  sister-in-law  to  the  famous  Professor  Cramer.  "  Under 
so  able  a  hand,"  continues  the  journal,  "we  do  not 
doubt  that  her  future  fame  is  assured,  particularly  when 
we  remember  the  improvement  he  has  made  in  the 
voice  of  the  present  first  opera  woman — so  powerful 


The  Peasant  47 

a  rival  will  perhaps  bring  down  the  insolence  of  the 
supercilious  Mara,  as  well  as  add  honours  to  Tenducci." 
Mme  Mara  was  at  the  height  of  her  wonderful  powers, 
and,  like  other  famous  opera-singers,  was  inclined  to  be 
capricious  at  times. 

Theroigne,  then,  aflame  with  her  desire  to  sing 
before  the  public,  had  discovered  a  musician  with  a 
splendid  reputation  as  a  producer  of  virtuose  available 
as  a  teacher.  Hideous,  repulsive,  and  a  deformity  as  he 
must  surely  have  appeared  to  her,  all  physical  drawbacks 
were  forgotten  in  her  ambition  and  a  passionate  devo- 
tion to  music.  She  had  admittedly  taken  up  her  plan 
of  singing  in  order  to  earn  money.  "  The  more,"  she 
adds,  with  one  of  her  sudden  scruples,  which  appear 
oddly  out  of  place  when  viewed  in  the  light  of  many 
of  her  actions,  <c  because  in  England  prejudices  against 
singers  hardly  exist,  or  have  very  little  importance. 
The  position  is  not  regarded  unfavourably,  especially 
if  one  limits  oneself  to  singing  at  concerts." 

Tenducci's  usual  charge  for  lessons  was  half  a  guinea 
each,  but  Theroigne,  feeling  unable  to  afford  so  large 
a  sum,  offered  him  eight  shillings,  and  consented  to 
have  her  lessons  at  odd  hours  whenever  it  suited  her 
master.  Moreover,  this  price  was  not  to  be  paid  until 
she  had  earned  it  by  singing  at  concerts.  Tenducci 
seemed  content  with  this  arrangement,  and  took  her 
to  a  lawyer,  who  drew  up  an  agreement  between 
master  and  pupil.  It  was  not  surprising  that  Theroigne, 
in  spite  of  her  apparent  astuteness,  was  imposed  upon 
by  the  unscrupulous  musician.  For  one  thing,  she 
knew  little  English  and  less  Italian.  a  There  was 
not  a  single  person  who  could  have  advised  me,"  she 


4&  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

says  in  her  u  Confessions."  "  I  had  no  experience.  I 
was  acting  in  good  faith,  but  was  dealing  with  a  scamp 
who  had  a  very  different  contract  drawn  up  to  the 
one  he  described  to  me.  It  did  not  contain  any  of 
the  things  we  had  agreed  upon.  Everything  he 
substituted  was  to  my  disadvantage.  It  was  a  false 
agreement  in  all  the  clauses,  and  I  had  the  imprudence 
to  sign  it  without  having  it  read  over  to  me  and 
explained.  Amongst  other  things  there  was  a  clause 
relating  to  a  forfeit  of  a  thousand  louis  if  I  failed  to 
carry  out  my  part  of  the  contract,  and  other  conditions 
which  utterly  revolted  me  when  at  length  I  had  the 
deed  read  and  explained  to  me  for  the  first  time  in 
Italy.  A  statement  was  even  inserted  that  I  should 
sing  at  the  theatre,  which  was  simply  a  lie,  as  it  would 
have  been  easy  for  me  to  prove." 

In  the  contract  Thdroigne  was  described  by  three 
different  names,  which  led  to  considerable  confusion. 
First  of  all  she  appears  as  Anna  Gioseppa  le  Comte, 
an  appellation  which  she  said  had  been  given  her  by 
Tenducci  ;  secondly  as  Anna  Gioseppa  Campinados, 
which  was  her  grandmother's  name,  and  which  she 
adopted  "  by  a  fantasy  which  appeared  to  her  quite 
innocent "  ;  and,  strangely  enough,  the  third  time  she 
is  described  as  Anna  Gioseppa  Theroigne  Spinster. 
This  manner  of  describing  her  absolutely  nonplussed 
her  examiners  at  Kufstein.  Not  recognising  the 
English  word  c<  spinster,"  and  receiving  no  help  from 
Theroigne  (who  had  either  never  known  its  meaning, 
had  forgotten,  or  was  resolved  for  purposes  of  her 
own  not  to  explain  that  it  meant  she  was  unmarried), 
they  attempted  to  trace  the  existence  of  a  possible 


The  Peasant  49 

Mr.  Spinster  who  might  have  been,  had  he  existed, 
the  father  of  her  child. 

"  What  does  the  name  conceal,"  inquired  her  inter- 
locutor in  prison — "  a  secret  ?  " 

"  You  have  no  right  to  ask  me  that  question,'* 
replied  Theroigne  angrily  ;  <c  my  private  life  concerns 
no  one." 

He  still  pondered.  Spinster  of  the  73rd  regiment 
in  England.  Who  was  he  ?  A  husband  ?  A  lover  ? 
He  would  never  know.  u  We  cannot  force  your 
confession,"  he  said. 

This  curious  mistake  has  since  been  made  by  other 
chroniclers,  whose  exhaustive  research  on  this  point 
has  likewise  proved  fruitless. 

Having  signed  the  contract  drawn  up  in  favour  of 
the  unscrupulous  and  grotesque  musician,  she  also 
agreed  to  travel  with  him  to  Italy,  accompanied  by 
her  two  brothers  and  a  half-brother.  She  tells  in 
her  "  Confessions  "  the  story  of  the  manner  in  which 
their  journey  came  about. 

u  Having  no  distrust,  and  still  acting  from  good 
faith,"  she  declares,  "  moreover,  feeling  assured  that 
the  contents  of  the  contract  were  according  to  the 
arrangement  I  had  proposed,  I  quietly  prepared  to 
return  to  my  country  to  offer  money  to  my  father, 
afterwards  meaning  to  go  to  Paris  and  sell  the  furniture 
which  I  had  left  there. 

<c  My  music-master,  whose  involved  affairs,  as  I 
discovered  later,  made  it  necessary  for  him  to  flee 
from  London,  knew  I  had  money.  Being  cunning 
as  well  as  a  rogue,  he  foresaw,  not  without  reason, 
that  my  father,  pleased  to  have  me  with  him  again, 


50  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

might  wish  to  keep  me  and  my  money,  and  that  I 
might  be  compelled  to  renounce  my  career  as  a  singer. 
My  master  prepared  to  come  with  me  for  this  reason, 
under  pretext  that  business  was  calling  him  to  Paris. 
In  reality  he  hoped  to  obtain  the  forfeit  of  a  thousand 
louis,  and  to  return  to  London  alone  to  pay  his  debts." 
Here  Theroigne  credits  Tenducci  with  too  much 
honesty. 

"  Not  knowing  the  real  motives  which  forced  him 
to  leave  England,"  she  continues,  "  I  accepted  his 
offer,  with  the  intention  of  doing  him  a  good  turn, 
and  for  the  sake  of  continuing  my  lessons. 

"In  order  not  to  lose  time  I  carried  a  small  piano- 
forte in  my  carriage.  This  procured  for  me  the 
pleasure  of  singing  as  often  as  I  wished,  even  whilst 
travelling.  So  we  set  out. 

"  When  approaching  the  Ardennes  and  near  the 
village  of  Jupille,  I  was  suddenly  informed  of  bad  news. 
My  father  was  dead.  I  thought  I  too  should  die  of 
grief.  It  appeared  they  had  written  to  me  at  London, 
but  the  letter  reached  England  after  my  departure. 

"  I  had  therefore  to  modify  my  plans.  After  having 
given  a  little  money  to  my  stepmother,  I  took  my 
brothers  with  me  and  went  to  Paris.  There  I  placed 
in  the  public  funds  forty  thousand  livres  at  eight  per 
cent.,  to  give  me  an  income  of  three  thousand  two 
hundred  livres.  In  the  meantime  my  master,  installed 
with  us  at  Paris  for  the  purpose  of  attending  to  his 
supposed  affairs,  found  himself  very  much  embarrassed. 
The  death  of  my  father  had  spoilt  his  plans,  and  he 
dared  not  return  to  Engl  ,nd,  as  he  had  nothing  where- 
with to  satisfy  his  creditors. 


JEROME   PETION 


The  Peasant  53 

"  He  tried  therefore  to  persuade  me  to  leave  for 
Italy.  He  represented  all  the  advantages  which  would 
accrue  in  the  way  of  education  for  my  brothers.  He 
insisted  above  all  on  the  facilities  I  should  have  in  that 
country  for  perfecting  myself  as  a  musician.  One 
of  my  brothers  who  had  also  a  taste  for  music  would 
be  in  a  good  school,  and  so  forth. 

"  In  short,  I  decided  to  take  the  journey  to  Italy,  I, 
my  three  brothers,  and  my  master.  Tenducci  promised 
to  reimburse  me  for  the  expenses  of  the  journey.  In 
the  interest  of  my  brothers,  in  the  interest  of  my  art, 
I  thought  I  was  doing  the  right  thing  in  undertaking 
this  fatal  journey. " 

The  actual  date  at  which  this  ill-assorted  couple  left 
London  is  difficult  to  determine.  In  April  1787 
Tenducci  appears  to  have  been  still  teaching  in  the 
English  capital,  as  on  May  3rd  of  that  year  one  of 
his  pupils  was  singing  "for  the  first  time  on  any  stage" 
at  the  Theatre  Royal,  Covent  Garden.  With  regard 
to  his  indebtedness,  the  declaration  of  his  bankruptcy 
is  to  be  found  in  the  London  Qazette  of  February 
1 2-1 6th,  1788,  in  which  he  is  described  as  Ferdinando 
Tenducci,  now  or  late  of  Dean  Street,  Soho,  music- 
seller,  dealer,  and  chapman.  He  was  cited  to  surrender 
himself  to  the  Commissioners  on  February  2ist 
and  28th,  and  on  March  29th.  This  is  all  the 
evidence  from  which  the  date  of  departure  may 
be  conjectured,  but  it  is  safe  to  assume  that  it  was 
somewhere  between  May  1787  and  February  1788. 
Nor  can  the  length  of  their  stay  in  Paris  be  definitely 
fixed.  A  letter  written  by  the  Marquis  de  Persan 
shortly  after  Theroigne  had  left  for  Italy  throws  some 
4 


54  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

light  on  her  movements.  From  it  Theroigne  would 
appear  to  have  shown  him  but  scant  consideration,  nay, 
hardly  bare  courtesy.  He  complained  that  he  was  not 
allowed  the  privilege  of  seeing  her  alone  for  more  than 
a  few  moments,  after  all  that  he  had  done  for  her.  It 
was  with  difficulty  she  had  obtained  his  acquiescence 
to  her  visit  to  London,  and  she  far  outstayed  the  limit 
he  had  fixed  for  the  journey.  On  her  return  to  Paris 
she  had  broken  entirely  away  from  his  influence.  There 
is  one  significant  passage  in  the  letter.  "  You  were 
always  duped,"  he  says,  "  by  all  the  Italians  and 
foreigners  with  whom  you  made  friends."  This  state- 
ment throws  a  light  on  Theroigne's  revolutionary 
career.  She  was  led  far  too  easily  by  her  companions. 
De  Persan's  letter  reveals  his  bitter  disappointment  in 
her. 

"  My  sentiments  towards  you  will  never  change," 
he  writes  ;  "  can  you  say  that  you  have  anything  to 
complain  of  in  me  ?  It  is  true  that  I  could  not  come 
to  see  you  before  you  left.  Two  reasons  prevented 
me.  Business  was  the  first,  the  second  was  that  I 
knew  I  had  very  little  influence  on  your  manner  of 
thinking.  When  you  left  for  England,  it  was  only 
to  be  for  two  months.  You  remained  there  for  six. 
On  your  return  to  France  I  saw  you  still  had  the 
same  passion  for  music.  You  were  bound  by  relations 
with  a  virtuoso  in  whose  company  you  intended  to 
go  to  Spain.  From  Paris  you  went  to  your  own 
country.  After  that  you  were  taken  by  a  desire  to 
go  to  Italy.  Can  I  find  in  that  the  slightest  mark 
of  friendship  and  gratitude  for  me  ?  With  difficulty 
I  saw  you  alone  for  a  quarter  of  an  hour.  I  foresaw 


The  Peasant  55 

what  would  happen  with  your  master.  You  always 
treated  me  badly,  though  I  never  did  aught  but  good 
to  you,  and  you  were  always  duped  by  all  the  Italians 
and  foreigners  with  whom  you  made  friends. 

"  You  were  right  to  give  me  particulars  about 
yourself  and  your  family.  No  one  will  ever  take  a 
greater  interest  in  them  than  I.  If  you  believed 
that  I  neglected  you,  it  is  necessary  for  you  to  let 
me  know  as  soon  as  your  season  at  Genoa  ends.  You 
will  have  proved  by  then  how  the  one  who  has  sworn 
to  love  you  for  ever  will  have  carried  out  his  bargain. 
What  did  you  tell  me  when  you  went  to  England  ? 
That  it  would  not  interrupt  our  friendship  ;  yet  when 
you  return  to  France,  I  know  that  you  have  entered 
into  an  engagement  for  five  years.  Did  you  ever  keep 
a  single  promise  that  you  gave  me  ?  Tell  me,  which 
of  us  two  has  a  right  to  complain  of  the  other  ?  Yes, 
chere  amie,  you  have  treated  both  my  heart  and  my 
purse  very  badly. 

"  Adieu,  dear  one.  Count  on  the  feelings  with 
which  you  have  inspired  me,  and  which,  in  spite  of 
the  wrong  you  have  done  me,  will  only  end  with  the 
life  of  him  who  will  love  and  honour  you  always. 

PERSAN. 


"  P.S.  —  I  see  with  pleasure  the  progress  you  have 
made  in  your  studies,  because  you  write  French  far 
better  than  you  did.  It  is  strange  that  you  should 
grow  perfect  in  this  language  whilst  you  are  in  Italy. 
I  fear  the  demon  of  music  which  possesses  you.  It 
has  not  helped  you  at  all  so  far." 

The  Marquis  was  a  shrewd  man  of  the  world  and 


5  ^  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

perhaps  no  one  understood  Theroigne  better  than  he 
at  this  period.  He  foresaw  that  her  impetuosity 
might  be  the  cause  of  her  undoing.  It  was  apparent 
in  everything  she  undertook  ;  in  her  music,  her  friend- 
ships, her  revolutionary  activities.  She  advanced 
blindly,  without  pause  or  forethought,  and  she  dashed 
herself  against  the  obstacles  which  appeared  in  her  path 
without  calculating  the  danger  she  ran  of  injuring 
her  own  powers  and  leaving  the  obstruction  exactly 
where  it  stood  before.  Of  stuff  like  this  martyrs  are 
made  ! 

She  had  not  been  in  Genoa  for  long  before  she 
realised  that  Tenducci  was  utterly  unscrupulous. 
She  broke  away  from  him  as  soon  as  she  could. 

"  My  master  threw  off  his  mask/*  she  explains  in 
her  "Confessions."  "He  told  me  I  should  have  to  carry 
out  all  the  clauses  of  our  agreement.  He  endeavoured 
to  force  me  to  sing  at  the  theatre  of  this  town.  I 
felt  it  was  an  outrage.  I  took  the  advice  of  honour- 
able people.  I  wrote  to  my  friends.  I  consulted  my 
lawyers.  All  of  them  assured  me  that  under  the 
circumstances  my  contract  was  absolutely  null  and 
void. 

"  During  these  proceedings  my  master  spread 
calumnies  about  me  everywhere.  But  people  knew 
him  as  well  as  me.  My  friends  sent  me  infamous 
letters  which  he  had  written  about  me  and  which  I 
produced  against  him.  The  man  I  had  loved  even 
sent  me,  by  an  express  from  London,  information  about 
my  professor  with  an  extract  from  bankruptcy  pro- 
ceedings, accompanied  by  the  advice  of  an  English 
lawyer. 


The  Peasant  57 

"  I  obtained  justice.  I  was  at  last  free  of  him,  but 
I  lost  the  expenses  of  the  voyage  and  two  hundred 
louis  which  I  had  advanced  on  the  lessons  he  had 
still  to  give  me.  The  disdain  that  people  have  for 
singers  in  Italy  and  the  unpleasantness  I  had  ex- 
perienced disgusted  me  with  a  musical  career,  as 
much  for  myself  as  for  my  brother.  The  latter,  who 
had  been  sent  by  me  to  Naples  when  my  lawsuit 
took  place  at  Genoa,  was  recalled  ;  I  did  not  wish  him 
to  continue  his  studies.  Being  rather  more  accustomed 
to  economy,  I  thought  we  had  enough  to  live  on." 

Had  she  but  realised  it,  the  price  she  had  paid 
for  being  rid  of  so  dangerous  a  companion  as  Tenducci 
was  a  cheap  one. 

When  she  had  been  there  about  a  year  the  stay 
at  Genoa  began  .to  weary  her,  and  she  thought  of 
going  to  Rome.  What  she  did  in  Genoa  can  only  be 
surmised.  The  lawsuit,  the  fact  that  she  had  trusted 
her  master  only  to  be  deceived,  the  mere  idea  of  being 
connected  with  the  stage  against  her  will  gave  her  a 
feeling  of  distaste  for  the  life  she  had  been  leading. 
It  must  be  confessed  that  her  scruples  concerning  the 
continuation  of  a  musical  career  appear  so  inconsistent 
with  her  ambitions  and  general  attitude  towards  life  that 
a  suspicion  creeps  in  as  to  whether  she  has  been  mis- 
judged in  other  respects.  It  is  impossible  not  to  call 
in  question  her  sincerity,  if  not  her  uprightness. 
Perhaps  her  friendship  with  the  Marquis  Durazzo  had 
something  to  do  with  this  question  of  her  future,  or 
perhaps  after  her  quarrel  with  Tenducci  she  found  the 
avenues  to  musical  success  closed  to  her.  Some  of 
the  experience  she  had  gained  was  all  to  her  advantage. 


5  8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

In  the  course  of  study  a  classical  singer  acquires 
general  information  which  is  useful  in  other  walks  of 
life. 

Theroigne's  financial  position  was  now  becoming 
insecure.  She  found  it  difficult  to  obtain  the  supplies 
from  de  Persan  which  she  had  come  to  regard  as  her 
chief  resource.  She  borrowed  money  from  Durazzo 
and  from  Perregaux,  and  tried  to  establish  a  corre- 
spondence between  these  two,  who  were  both  of  them 
financiers.  She  wrote  to  the  latter  concerning  the 
former  :  "  I  should  be  charmed  to  be  the  means  of 
making  the  letters  of  so  delightful  a  gentleman  accept- 
able to  you.  Command  my  services.  I  expect  to 
make  some  stay  in  this  lovely  town." 

On  March  9th,  1789,  she  wrote  from  Genoa  to 
thank  Perregaux  for  the  trouble  he  had  taken  to 
obtain  payment  for  her  from  M.  de  Persan,  and 
enclosed  all  the  necessary  papers  to  make  such  for- 
malities easier  in  the  future,  as  another  six  months' 
income  was  already  due.  Her  letter  is  simple  and 
businesslike,  although  somewhat  discursive,  as  her 
letters  to  her  Paris  banker  always  were.  He  seems 
to  have  been  as  easily  wound  round  her  little  finger 
as  most  of  her  other  friends,  and  she  never  hesitates 
to  ask  for  his  financial  help  both  on  behalf  of  herself 
and  her  brothers,  although,  in  his  case,  she  was  never 
lacking  in  gratitude. 

"  I  am  much  obliged  to  you,  monsieur,"  she  con- 
tinues, "  for  the  kindness  you  have  shown  in  permit- 
ting me  to  draw  upon  you  whilst  I  was  waiting  to  be 
paid.  I  beg  you  to  send  a  draft  of  a  hundred  louis 
to  your  correspondent  at  Genoa,  with  an  order  to  pay 


The  Peasant  59 

M.  Dourazzo  and  to  give  me  the  rest,  so  that  I  can 
meet  the  expenses  of  my  voyage  to  Rome  ;  and,  at 
the  same  time,  it  would  be  convenient  if  you  had  the 
kindness  to  send  me  a  letter  for  your  correspondent  at 
Rome,  to  whom  you  can  give  my  money  when  I  am 
paid. 

"  As  regards  my  diamonds,  I  will  send  them  to  you 
when  I  reach  Rome,  and  you  can  keep  them  until  my 
talents  permit  me  to  return  to  England. 

"  If  you  will  be  so  kind  as  to  send  me  letters  of 
recommendation  for  Rome  and  Naples,  where  I  hope 
to  go  when  I  have  stayed  in  Rome  some  time,  I 
should  be  extremely  obliged.  I  shall  write  also  to 
M.  Hammerslys.  He  has  already  recommended  me 
to  his  correspondent  at  Genoa.  I  owe  him  a  great 
deal  for  all  the  marks  of  esteem  which  he  has  given 
me.  I  had  the  honour  yesterday  to  dine  with  your 
friend  the  English  Consul,  who,  for  your  sake,  has 
shown  me  a  great  deal  of  politeness  whilst  I  have 
been  at  Genoa. 

"  I  beg  your  pardon  for  bothering  you  with  so 
many  things.  But  I  have  something  else  to  ask  of  you. 
I  believe  that  you  can  render  me  a  service.  This 
would  be  all  the  more  agreeable  to  me  since  I  shall  not 
have  to  have  recourse  to  my  supposed  friends  again. 

"  I  came  to  Italy  to  sing  and  to  study.  I  brought 
with  me  my  three  brothers — one  of  them  is  studying 
painting,  and  the  two  others  a  commercial  life.  As  I 
am  obliged  to  travel,  I  wished  to  establish  the  eldest 
at  Liege,  where  we  have  relatives  who  are  in  business. 
I  have  need  of  three  thousand  livres,  or  three  thousand 
five  hundred  livres,  in  order  to  purchase  a  manager- 


60  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

ship  for  my  eldest  brother,  so  that  the  income  derived 
from  it  will  be  enough  for  his  needs  while  he  is  study- 
ing in  an  office. 

"  Nevertheless  I  have  reflected  that  if  I  should  die 
you  would  lose  your  money.  I  wish  to  render  this 
service  to  my  brother,  and  I  am  rather  embarrassed 
about  it.  If  only  you  would  advance  the  sum  for  a 
year,  you  should  receive  half  of  it  back  every  six 
months,  with  the  interest,  and  you  would  be  entirely 
repaid  in  a  year,  counting  from  next  month.  If  you 
will  do  that  for  me,  I  assure  you  I  should  be  extremely 
obliged.  I  would  have  asked  Mr.  Hammerslys  in- 
stead, but  as  my  income  is  from  France,  I  thought  it 
would  be  simpler  to  make  the  proposition  to  you.  I 
beg  you  to  give  me  an  answer  to  this  by  return  of 
courier,  as  I  shall  not  decide  upon  any  other  course 
until  I  know  what  you  think  about  it. 
"  Your  servant, 

"  ANNE-JOSEPHE  THEROIGNE. 

"  Please  address  your  answer  to  the  English  Consul's, 
your  correspondent  at  Genoa." 

Impulsive  as  ever,  she  changed  her  mind  almost 
immediately  after  despatching  the  letter  and,  instead  of 
awaiting  a  reply,  sent  her  brother  to  Paris  with  a 
second  appeal  dated  March  22nd.  "  I  beg  you  to  give 
ten  louis  to  my  brother  who  will  hand  you  this  letter," 
she  writes  :  "  he  is  the  one  of  whom  I  spoke  to  you 
who  is  going  to  Liege.  You  will  then  have  the  kind- 
ness to  send  three  thousand  livres  to  Liege,  not  to 
include  the  ten  louis  which  you  will  give  him  for  his 
journey. 


The  Peasant  61 

"  Please  send  the  money  to  your  correspondent  as  I 
have  already  advised,  with  orders  that  it  is  only  to  be 
used  for  the  purchase  of  this  appointment,  and  that  he 
will  have  the  kindness  to  pay  the  same  in  my  brother's 
name,  for  fear  that  they  would  make  him  pay  more 
than  the  business  was  worth,  or  counsel  him  to  invest 
his  money  less  solidly.  I  have  no  other  fears  on  his 
behalf,  for  the  young  man  is  very  sensible,  and  I  hope 
that,  considering  his  good  carriage  and  manners,  you 
will  be  persuaded  to  take  an  interest  in  him.  It  is 
true  that  I  have  no  real  claim  to  so  much  service  and 
good-nature  on  your  part.  You  hardly  know  me,  and 
I  can  only  ask  for  the  generosity  of  a  kindly  heart 
from  you.  So  that  I  hope  my  brother  will  awaken 
your  interest  on  his  own  behalf,  and  that  you  will 
do  your  best  in  order  that  he  may  be  well  recom- 
mended at  Liege.  You  will  therefore  please  give  him 
a  letter  of  recommendation.  He  has  need  of  nothing 
beyond  advice  and  protection,  because  he  will  be 
established  at  Liege  as  soon  as  his  talents  and  faculties 
enable  him  to  start  in  business.  That  is  why  I  beg 
you  to  give  him  a  letter  to  your  correspondent  in  order 
that  the  latter  may  take  him  into  his  office  and  teach 
him.  I  ask  no  more  of  you  than  this." 

She  informed  Perregaux  that  she  was  leaving  for 
Rome  and  asked  him  to  address  his  reply  to  the  Poste 
Restante  of  that  town. 

Her  concern  for  the  happiness  of  her  brothers  is 
one  of  Theroigne's  noble  traits.  They  were  hardly 
ever  out  of  her  thoughts,  and  whenever  she  had  any 
money  she  willingly  shared  it  with  them. 

Her  younger  brother,  who  was  to  be  a  painter,  was 


62  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

to  begin  his  studies  at  Rome.  Theroigne  did  not 
make  a  protracted  stay  in  the  Eternal  City.  The  stir 
and  movement  of  the  Revolution  in  France  could  not 
long  remain  hidden.  Reports  of  the  doings  in  Paris 
reached  her  ears  and  excited  her  latent  curiosity. 

As  soon  as  her  brother  was  settled  in  lodgings  she 
left  Rome  and  made  her  way  back  to  France.  What 
happened  to  her  half-brother  at  this  juncture  does  not 
appear.  He  was  called  Pierrot  and  eventually  he  be- 
came a  soldier. 

When  she  was  back  in  Paris  Th6roigne  wrote  to 
Perregaux  to  thank  him  for  the  care  he  had  taken 
of  her  books  and  for  his  thoughtfulness  in  returning 
them  to  her  as  soon  as  she  gave  him  a  permanent 
address.  Then  followed  the  usual  request  for  a  favour 
on  behalf  of  her  brother  Joseph.  "  I  hope,  monsieur," 
she  writes,  "  that  you  have  not  forgotten  my  request 
and  that  you  have  sent  a  letter  of  recommendation  on 
behalf  of  my  brother  at  Rome.  If  by  any  chance  you 
have  not  yet  done  so,  I  beg  you  to  recollect  this 
matter  and  to  ask  your  correspondent  to  watch  over 
his  progress  and  over  his  person  whilst  he  is  staying 
en  pension,  in  order  that  we  may  be  able  to  judge  what 
sort  of  an  education  they  are  giving  him.  I  shall  be 
extremely  obliged  to  you.'* 

With  Th6roigne  it  was  a  case  of  "Love  me,  love 
my  brothers." 


CHAPTER   II 

THE  PATRIOT 

THESE   first   rumours   of  the   Revolution  which 
reached  her  at  Rome  produced  a  great  impression 
upon  Theroigne.     "  When    I   learnt  that  a  National 
Assembly  was  in  process  of  formation  and  would  be 
open  to  every  one,  I  was  enraptured  by  the  idea,"  she 
says  in  her  "  Confessions."  In  that  hour  the  patriot  was 
born.    In  that  hour  the  aspirant  singer,  the  adventuress 
in  search  of  culture,   fine  raiment,   and  jewels,   died 
in   her.       She    forgot   that   she   was    not    French    by 
nationality,  she  forgot  that   she  had  been  spending  a 
life  of  luxury  and  ease  in  Paris  ;  she  remembered  only 
that  she  had  been  a  peasant,  that  her  sympathies  were 
with  the  French  people,  and  that  in  a  struggle  for  liberty 
she  must  take  their  part.     Her  natural  love  of  life  and 
movement,  her  thirst  for  knowledge  and  experience,  her 
need  of  a  definite  form  of  expression  for  her  energies, 
made  it  inevitable  that  she  should  be  drawn  into  the 
whirlpool  where  these  qualities  might  be  utilised  and 
satisfied.      But   as  yet   no    thought   of   such    activity 
had  entered  her  mind  ;  she  was  simply  the  student,  and 
desired  to  understand  more  of  the  political  crisis  which 
was  shaking  the  country  to  its  very  foundations.    Hence 
her  interest  in  the  National  Assembly  and  her  desire 
to  be  present  at  its  sittings,  and  to  learn  something 

63 


64  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

of  the  constitutional  measures  brought  up  there  for 
debate. 

Fascinated  by  the  prospect  of  witnessing  the  grand 
and  extraordinary  spectacle  which  she  believed  was 
about  to  unfold  before  the  gaze  of  an  astonished  and 
applauding  world,  she  had  hurriedly  put  her  affairs  in 
order  so  that  she  might  be  able  to  depart  for  France 
without  delay.  It  was  the  nth  of  May,  1789,  when 
she  reached  the  capital,  full  of  curiosity  and  expectation, 
a  woman  whose  heart  beat  wholly  for  the  people,  and 
who  was  willing  to  devote  her  untiring  powers  to  their 
services. 

At  first  she  felt  strangely  bewildered  after  her  return, 
not  in  the  least  realising  the  meaning  of  what  was  going 
on  around  her.  Paris  was  changed  as  well  as  herself. 
There  was  a  murmur  of  expectancy,  an  undercurrent 
of  discontent  she  could  not  fathom.  The  French  were 
no  longer  the  happy,  busy,  gay  people  she  had  known. 
They  gathered  into  knots  and  groups  at  the  street- 
corners,  in  the  wine-shops,  and  in  the  public  gardens. 
They  scowled  and  muttered  threats,  they  spoke  loudly 
and  gesticulated  wildly,  or  they  whispered  ominously, 
which  was  the  most  dangerous  of  all.  They  spat,  they 
swore,  they  stamped,  and  flourished  the  newspapers 
they  were  reading,  full  of  a  tremendous  purpose  at 
which  Theroigne  could  only  guess.  She  looked  for 
old  friends  who  could  explain  matters  to  her,  but  it 
was  not  easy  to  find  any  one  who  had  leisure  enough 
to  repeat  to  her  eager  ears  all  that  had  taken  place 
in  the  past  few  months,  with  which  they  were  already 
perfectly  familiar.  It  was  not  the  time  for  retrospect  ; 
the  hour  of  the  forward  march  had  struck.  In  her 


The  Patriot  65 

doubt  she  turned  to  the  papers  for  enlightenment  ;  and 
the  reason  of  the  people's  agitation,  which  at  first  was 
dim  to  her  comprehension,  grew  gradually  clearer. 

The  people  were  perishing,  unable  to  pay  the  price 
of  bread,  unable  to  find  work  ;  or  if  at  work,  then 
wretchedly  under-paid,  over-taxed,  burdened  with  dues, 
an  oppressed  multitude,  "  a  vast  herd  scattered  far 
beyond  the  visible  horizon,  everywhere  ill-used,  starved, 
and  fleeced." 

Women,  hearing  the  price  of  food  was  dearer,  gave 
vent  to  shrieks  of  rage,  men  cursed  their  own  impo- 
tence— both  compelled  to  these  forms  of  expression  by 
fear  of  actual  starvation.  Women  and  men  stood  for 
hours  in  the  queues  outside  the  bakers'  shops,  fighting 
for  the  sour,  earthy  lumps  of  dough  which  did  duty 
for  the  staff  of  life.  Women  robbed  the  grain  markets, 
men  attacked  loaded  carts  on  the  main  roads,  supposing 
their  burden  to  be  grain.  The  determination  of  these 
plunderers  was  extraordinary  ;  nothing  seemed  to  tire 
or  repulse  them.  Violence  produced  violence.  It  was 
not  easy  to  stay  the  hand  of  the  desperate  workmen 
who  were  fighting  grimly  for  a  bare  existence. 

Theroigne  recognised  no  place  for  herself  in  this 
general  hubbub,  and  remained  quietly  waiting  in  her 
lodgings  at  the  Hotel  de  Toulouse.  She  tried  to 
occupy  herself  with  the  music  which  had  hitherto  been 
her  greatest  solace.  She  hoped  that  if  strife  were  to 
come,  as  it  seemed  it  must,  she  too  might  share  the 
people's  struggle  and  help  them,  if  only  with  her  voice, 
to  regain  their  freedom.  The  fever  that  was  in  the 
air  was  creeping  into  her  blood.  Insidious,  slow  but 
sure,  the  poison  of  class-hatred  was  spreading  more  and 


66  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

more,  and  threatening  an  outbreak  between  the  antagon- 
istic forces  which  must  result  eventually  in  bloodshed. 
How,  then,  should  Theroigne  remain  immune  from  this 
infection  ?  cc  The  general  stir  and  excitement  affected 
me  very  soon,"  she  says  significantly.  "  I  had  no  under- 
standing of  the  unacknowledged  rights  of  the  people, 
but  I  naturally  loved  liberty.  An  instinct,  a  keen 
feeling  which  I  could  not  define,  made  me  approve  of 
the  Revolution  without  in  the  least  knowing  why,  for  I 
had  but  little  instruction." 

Presently  she  learnt,  fragment  by  fragment,  at  the 
sittings  of  the  National  Assembly,  and  from  talks  with 
some  of  the  deputies,  the  needs  of  the  people,  the  evils 
they  desired  to  remedy,  and  the  means  that  were 
proposed  in  order  to  bring  about  these  longed-for 
results. 

When  Theroigne  arrived  in  Paris  the  first  riot  of 
importance  had  already  taken  place  at  the  factory  of 
the  paper-maker  R6veillon,  the  employer  who  was 
accused  of  believing  fifteen  sous  a  day  enough  for 
any  journeyman.  Theroigne  might  have  learnt  some- 
thing there  of  the  starvation  wages  of  the  people  and 
their  sufferings.  She  was  too  late  also  for  the  opening 
of  the  States  General  at  Versailles  on  May  5th,  and 
only  heard  afterwards  of  the  terrible  disappointment 
of  the  populace  when  it  was  found  that  the  Government 
had  made  no  definite  proposals  of  reform,  and  that 
Necker,  in  the  opinion  of  the  black-robed  deputies  of 
the  Tiers-etat,  had  utterly  failed  to  grasp  the  situation. 
What  had  they  not  hoped  from  his  speech !  Being 
ordered  to  confer  on  the  subject  of  their  legislative 
powers  with  commissioners  of  the  other  two  orders, 


The  Patriot  67 

those  of  the  third,  among  whom  were  Garat,  Thouret, 
Volney,  Barnave,  and  le  Chapelier,  debated  for  a 
fortnight  to  no  purpose,  as  Target,  Mounier,  and 
Rabaut  de  Saint-Etienne  had  to  confess  in  consultation 
with  their  colleagues.  On  June  loth  they  decided  on 
the  bold  step  of  inviting  the  nobility  and  clergy  to 
join  them.  All  to  no  purpose.  Then  they  declared 
themselves  ready  to  form  a  separate  entity.  On 
June  1 7th,  on  the  motion  of  Sieves,  the  deputies 
of  the  Tiers-etat  constituted  themselves  the  National 
Assembly,  the  legislative  body  which  should  be  open 
to  all,  and  to  the  sittings  of  which  Theroigne  was 
looking  forward  with  an  eagerness  which  seems  strange 
in  one  who  had  lived  her  previous  life. 

Theroigne's  interest  in  the  Revolution  was  not 
allowed  to  slacken  for  want  of  events  to  feed  it  during 
the  first  few  weeks  of  her  return  to  Paris.  On 
June  4th  the  Dauphin  died,  and  the  Queen  was 
plunged  in  grief.  It  was  left  to  the  friends  of  the 
Comte  d'Artois,  her  brother-in-law,  to  complain  of 
the  people's  insolence  in  taking  matters  into  their 
own  hands,  and  to  attempt  to  discipline  the  rebellious 
Tiers-etat  by  announcing  that  there  should  be  no  royal 
session,  which,  owing  to  the  closing  of  the  Salle  des 
Menus,  brought  about  the  celebrated  oath  of  the 
tennis-court.  On  June  2jrd  the  postponed  session 
took  place,  and  the  Tiers-etat,  inspired  to  the  step 
by  the  stirring  words  of  Mirabeau,  defied  the  Crown. 
A  few  days  later  the  nobles  and  the  clergy,  at  the 
King's  request,  accepted  the  invitation  previously  offered, 
and  the  union  of  the  three  orders  was  complete.  The 
people's  parliament  had  taken  definite  shape. 


68  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Theroigne  was  not  slow  to  profit  by  the  privileges 
accorded  her  of  listening  to  the  debates.  uThe 
National  Assembly,"  she  says,  cc  seemed  to  me  a 
fine  and  noble  spectacle ;  I  was  struck  by  its  majesty. 
I  experienced  emotions  of  an  elevated  nature  there, 
and  my  soul  soared  to  unknown  heights.  At  first  I 
did  not  understand  much  of  all  these  discussions  and 
deliberations,  but  gradually  a  light  glowed  in  me,  and 
I  realised  clearly  the  position  of  the  people  as  opposed 
to  that  of  the  privileged  classes.  Then  my  sympathies 
for  the  former  grew  greater,  the  better  informed  I 
became,  and  were  transformed  into  an  ardent  love  when 
I  was  persuaded  that  justice  and  right  were  on  the  side 
of  the  people." 

At  first,  according  to  her  own  account,  Theroigne 
was  quite  content  to  remain  a  spectator  among  the 
crowds.  She  walked  in  the  streets  and  squares, 
questioning  one  person  and  then  another,  trying  to 
understand  their  hopes,  their  fears,  and  their  struggles. 
The  early  years  of  hardship  she  had  endured  had  never 
been  forgotten,  and  served  now  to  awaken  her  quick 
sympathies  with  their  sufferings.  Her  independent 
and  resourceful  nature  rebelled  at  the  thought  of 
oppression  for  others.  Her  heart  thrilled  with  com- 
passion. Her  mind  demanded  time  for  reflection. 

One  of  the  busiest  spots  in  Paris  at  that  day  was 
the  gardens  of  the  Palais  Royal,  which  had  been 
thrown  open  to  the  people  by  the  Due  d'Or!6ans. 
This  space  was  surrounded  by  cafes,  wine-shops,  book- 
sellers', and  gambling-hells,  all  of  them  places  where 
eager  people  congregated  to  hear  the  news  which  came 
through  from  Versailles  in  a  constant  stream,  brought 


> 


69 


The  Patriot  71 

by  the  agents  of  the  Duke.  In  the  gardens  themselves 
men  spoke  treason  and  women  cried  revolt.  Those 
who  shouted  loudest  against  the  existing  form  of 
government  received  the  most  applause.  Self-con- 
stituted politicians  gave  voice  to  impossible  schemes 
for  the  regeneration  of  the  social  system  ;  they  spoke 
of  extinguishing  privileges,  of  establishing  numerical 
sovereignty,  of  applying  the  teachings  of  Rousseau's 
"  Contrat  Social."  A  huge  audience  of  the  floating 
population  applauded  their  diatribes,  however  chimeri- 
cal or  fanatic — failures,  for  the  most  part,  in  the  arts 
or  at  the  bar,  unemployed  clerks  and  officials,  pro- 
fessional gamblers,  touts,  loungers,  foreigners  :  all,  in 
short,  who  had  no  settled  calling.  The  orators, 
mounted  on  chairs  or  tables,  gesticulated  more  and 
more  wildly,  the  crowds  of  agitators  swayed  and 
rocked  with  the  strength  of  their  emotions.  Closer 
and  closer  the  people  thronged,  until  they  became 
so  tightly  packed  that,  as  Arthur  Young  described 
the  scene,  an  apple  thrown  from  a  balcony  on  to  the 
moving  floor  of  heads  would  not  have  reached  the 
ground. 

Those  who  were  in  favour  of  monarchy,  aristocracy, 
law,  and  order  dared  not  venture  into  the  gardens  if 
they  valued  unbroken  bones  and  whole  skins.  They 
ran  the  risk  of  being  ducked  in  the  fountains,  of 
having  to  dodge  chairs  that  were  flung  at  them,  or  if 
not  chairs  then  stones,  bottles,  or  other  dangerous 
and  unpleasant  missiles.  And  physical  activity  once 
aroused,  windows  were  shattered,  doors  were  battered 
in,  pavements  torn  up,  and  trees  uprooted.  Friends, 
on  the  other  hand,  were  carried  in  procession  shoulder 
5 


72  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

high.  People  v  ere  no  longer  judged  by  appearance  or 
wealth,  but  by  their  attitude  towards  the  new  move- 
ment. Theroigne  realised  that  in  this  spot  she  could 
learn  much.  "  At  the  Palais  Royal,  where  I  went  to 
walk  nearly  every  day,"  she  says,  "  I  assisted  at  the 
dawn  of  the  new  era.  That  which  struck  me  most 
was  the  air  of  goodwill.  Egoism  seemed  to  have 
disappeared  from  all  our  hearts.  There  was  no  longer 
a  distinction  between  the  classes.  We  elbowed  one 
another,  we  chatted  as  though  in  the  home  circle. 
The  rich.,  at  this  moment  of  fermentation,  mixed 
willingly  with  the  poor  and  deigned  to  speak  to  them 
as  though  they  were  their  equals.  In  short,  all  the 
countenances  appeared  to  have  undergone  a  change. 
Each  one  dared  to  show  forth  his  character  and  natural 
faculties  in  public.  I  saw  many  who,  although  covered 
with  rags,  wore  a  heroic  air.  However  little  sensibility 
one  possessed,  it  was  not  possible  to  witness  such  a 
spectacle  with  indifference." 

On  July  1 2th  the  Palais  Royal  gardens  were  the  scene 
of  an  organised  debate.  Necker  had  been  dismissed 
the  previous  evening,  and  in  the  morning  rumour  was 
busily  spreading  to  that  effect.  The  populace  hastened 
to  its  usual  meeting-place.  Camille  Desmoulins,  not 
yet  famous,  enthusiast,  thinker,  and  orator,  was  present 
in  the  gardens  that  Sunday  morning.  He  leapt  upon 
a  table  and  cried,  "  To  arms,  to  arms  !  "  He  moved 
the  crowd  by  his  eloquence ;  he  gave  them  a  green 
cockade  as  a  symbol  of  their  purpose.  They  stripped 
the  leaves  from  the  trees  and  wore  them  in  their  hats. 
And  then  he  led  them  in  procession  through  the  town, 
wax  busts  of  Necker  and  the  Due  d'  Orleans  being 


The  Patriot  73 

carried  in  triumph  at  the  head  of  the  column.  The 
people  pillaged  and  sacked  the  bakers',  the  butchers',  the 
wine-shops,  and  the  gunsmiths*,  and  as  the  evening 
wore  on  the  rioting  became  more  pronounced  and 
dangerous. 

The  crowd  tried  to  recruit  all  who  passed,  even  the 
peaceable  people  on  pleasure  intent,  or  those  returning 
from  some  place  of  entertainment.  All  who  were 
stopped  were  forced  to  answer  the  invariable  question, 
"  On  which  side  are  you  ? "  Women  rolling  along  in 
their  carriages  found  ruffians  at  their  horses'  heads,  and 
stepped  out  into  the  mud  in  dainty  shoes  to  cry 
"  Vive  le  Tiers-etat  !  "  Dirty  ragamuffins,  only  half 
clad,  approached  well-dressed  people  to  beg  in  the 
name  of  the  Tiers-£tat. 

Th£roigne  was  in  the  streets  accompanied  by  a 
servant.  An  intense  curiosity  impelled  her  to  see  all 
she  could.  Armed  men  passed  and  repassed,  besides 
many  who  were  in  search  of  weapons.  She  deliberately 
stopped  some  of  the  soldiers  and  put  the  favourite 
question  to  them  : 

"  Are  you  for  the  Tiers-etat  ?  " 

The  proceeding  was  not  always  a  safe  one.  An 
officer  resented  the  liberty  she  had  taken  and  threatened 
to  arrest  her.  She  fled,  and  he  followed,  until,  dis- 
covering that  she  had  no  one  with  her  but  the  maid, 
and  appeared  to  be  actuated  merely  by  curiosity,  he 
gave  up  the  pursuit. 

On  the  following  morning  the  crowd  was  even 
greater,  there  were  more  armed  men  than  before. 
They  had  guns,  swords,  and  pikes.  The  green  cockade 
was  to  be  seen  in  all  their  hats.  Theroigne  followed 


74  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  practice  and  adorned  herself  with  the  prevailing 
colour.  From  her  account,  it  would  seem  that  she  had 
not  noticed  the  green  cockade  before,  in  which  case  she 
could  not  have  been  present  at  Camille  Desmoulins's 
meeting.  Green  was  the  colour  of  the  d'  Artois 
liveries,  and  was  soon  discarded  for  the  tricolour. 
Theroigne  followed  the  change  of  fashion  without 
delay.  She  was  hardly  able  to  control  her  excitement, 
and  was  as  much  aware  as  any  one  of  the  coming 
struggle. 

That  day,  the  I3th,  the  electors  of  Paris,  chosen  by 
the  districts  for  the  purpose  of  sending  deputies  to  the 
States  General,  having  refused  to  disperse,  flocked  to 
the  H6tel  de  Ville.  The  hours  were  occupied  in 
forming  the  National  Guard  of  Paris.  At  first  this 
body  was  composed  of  twelve  thousand  volunteers,  the 
number  being  rapidly  increased  to  four  times  twelve 
thousand.  The  duty  of  the  Guard  was  to  maintain 
order  in  the  streets.  They  had  not  been  enrolled  a 
moment  too  soon.  On  the  following  day  the  Bastille 
fell. 

Theroigne  had  been  in  the  capital  one  month  and 
three  days.  She  had  so  far  done  nothing  except  to 
try  to  grasp  the  position  of  the  people  and  understand 
what  was  going  on.  But  her  chroniclers  do  not  allow 
that  she  needed  so  much  time  to  look  about  her.  They 
accuse  her  falsely  of  being  already  active  in  the  revolu- 
tionary ranks  by  July.  "  From  the  first  gathering  of 
the  crowds  she  appeared  in  the  streets,  and  devoted  her 
beauty  to  serve  as  an  ensign  to  the  people,"  writes  the 
poetic  Lamartine.  "Dressed  in  a  riding-habit  of  the 
colour  of  blood,  a  plume  of  feathers  in  her  hat,  a 


The  Patriot  75 

sabre  at   her   side,  and    two    pistols    in    her    belt,  she 
hastened  to  join  every  insurrection.'* 

The  populace  thronged  about  the  great  prison  on  the 
evening  of  the  I3th.  The  ringleaders  interspersed  the 
cries  for  arms  with  cries  of  u  To  the  Bastille."  De 
Launay  ordered  up  the  drawbridges ;  he  knew  what  was 
threatened.  On  the  morning  of  the  I4th  the  pre- 
dominating cry  was  first  for  arms.  The  tocsin  rang  at 
daybreak  from  the  tower  of  every  church  ;  shops  were 
closed  and  barricaded.  A  report  spread  that  there 
were  arms  in  plenty  at  the  Hotel  des  Invalides.  Pat- 
riots rushed  tumultuously  towards  this  possible  source. 
Theroigne,  says  the  incorrigible  romancier,  Lairtullier, 
was  at  their  head.  Pauline  d'Aumez  and  Louise 
Bourgeoise,  as  determined  Republicans  as  herself, 
followed  her  lead.  The  Governor,  worthy  Sombreuil, 
denied  admittance  to  the  rabble,  assuring  any  one  who 
would  listen  that  he  must  first  send  to  Versailles  for 
orders.  Turning  a  deaf  ear  to  all  such  expostulation, 
the  crowd  invaded  the  halls,  rooms,  vaults,  and  gardens, 
seized  cannon  and  musketry,  which  they  dragged  and 
carried  to  the  H6tel  de  Ville.  In  the  shortest  possible 
space  of  time  not  a  musket  or  a  sabre  remained  visible 
to  human  eye  at  the  Invalides.  "Theroigne  was  every- 
where,"  continues  the  unscrupulous  Lairtullier.  "  She 
gave  the  orders,  they  were  obeyed;  she  had  detach- 
ments of  men  placed  at  the  barriers,  she  seized  the 
dispatches  which  the  Court  were  sending  from 
Versailles  to  Paris — in  short,  she  organised  the  un- 
disciplined masses  who  were  newly  armed."  Truly  a 
valiant  Theroigne,  literally  inspired,  not  unlike  the 
Maid  of  Orleans,  for  she  knew  nothing  of  soldiering. 


7  6  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Lamartine  calls  her  a  name  that  does  not  suit  her — the 
impure  Joan  of  Arc  of  the  public  streets. 

Encouraged  by  their  success  in  obtaining  arms,  the 
people  were  ready  for  action.  They  joined  the  large 
crowd  already  besieging  the  Bastille.  Cries  of  a  Let  us 
storm  the  prison  !  "  were  added  to  the  already  existing 
babel.  The  little  garrison  summoned  the  assailants  to 
retire.  It  is  an  oft-told  tale — a  well-known  tale. 
Those  attacking  persisted.  Two  men  mounted  the 
roof  of  the  guard-house  and  broke  the  chain  of  the 
bridge  with  axes.  Down  came  the  bridge  with  a 
rattle  and  clatter ;  no  less  quickly  the  rabble  were 
on  it  and  across  it,  making  for  the  next  bridge  over 
the  second  moat.  A  discharge  of  musketry  brought 
them  to  a  stand.  But  the  mob  was  desperate  ;  the 
firing  continued  for  four,  five  hours.  De  Launay  had 
half  a  mind  to  put  a  lighted  match  to  the  powder 
magazine,  and  take  decisive  measures  by  blowing  up 
the  fortress.  Was  it  the  garrison  opposed  him,  or 
did  he  fail  for  want  of  resolution  ?  Instead,  all  of  a 
sudden,  came  the  word  of  surrender.  The  Bastille 
had  fallen.  The  rush  of  the  crowd,  the  seizure  of 
de  Launay,  the  infinite  danger  of  a  young  woman 
thought  to  be  his  daughter,  the  escape  of  the  Swiss, 
the  triumphant  rescue  of  the  seven  dazed  prisoners, 
the  bloodshed  which  neither  Hulin's  nor  Elie's  word 
could  hinder  ;  all  these  things  are  familiar  to  every 
one  :  yet  even  reliable  historians  have  over-coloured 
a  picture  which  had  more  than  enough  of  the  dramatic 
element  in  it,  without  their  aid.  De  Goncourt,  writ- 
ing of  Theroigne,  gives  a  stroke  of  unsurpassed 
imaginative  genius.  She  "leapt  with  joy,  she  was 


The  Patriot  77 

carried  away  by  the  crowd,  gunpowder  blackened  her, 
blood  stained  her.  Beat  the  drums,  sound  the  tocsins, 
let  the  people  march  on.  She  ran  furious,  brandishing 
death  and  destruction.  She  armed  herself  at  the 
Invalides.  She  took  a  tower  at  the  ^Bastille  !  "  Such 
a  feat  is  too  marvellous  to  be  passed  over  in  silence. 
Dusaulx1  places  her  in  the  rank  of  the  conquerors, 
and  many  have  followed  him.  Lamartine  bestowed 
upon  her  the  sabre  d'honneur,  adding  that  it  was  voted 
to  her  on  the  breach  by  the  victors. 

Lamothe-Langon,  an  even  more  picturesque  liar  than 
Lairtullier,  heaps  detail  on  detail  regarding  her 
presence  at  the  Bastille  on  the  unforgotten  I4th. 
She  showed  herself  first  in  the  hottest  fire,  urged  on 
her  brother  patriots,  encouraged  them  when  they 
weakened,  brought  them  back  to  the  charge  if  panic 
terror  turned  them  momentarily  aside. 

"I  still  seem  to  be  in  the  midst  of  that  famous  day," 
are  words  he  attributes  to  her.  "I  hear  the  sharp 
whistle  of  the  balls,  the  thunder  of  the  artillery,  the 
clamours  of  the  multitude,  the  cries  of  the  wounded, 
the  despair  of  the  mothers  and  wives  whose  sons  and 
husbands  had  perished  in  this  holy  cause.  All  remains 
vividly  present  to  me,  both  in  my  mind  and  in  my 
heart.  Glorious  moment,  intoxicating  day  !  How 
quickly  you  passed  !  " 

Having  forced  a  capitulation,  the  people  penetrated 
into  the  last  refuge  of  despotism ;  the  cowardly 
defenders  who  had  turned  the  guns  upon  them 
had  the  impudent  audacity  to  receive  them  with 
apparent  joy,  and  dared  to  mingle  with  the  cries 
1  "  De  I'lnsurrection  parisienne  et  de  la  prise  de  la  Bastille.'' 


78  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

of  "Long  live  the  people!"  cries  of  "Long  live  the 
King!" 

"  Where  is  the  governor  ? "  demanded  Theroigne. 

They  pointed  him  out  to  her. 

"  Assassin  of  the  people  !  "  she  cried ;  "  you  will 
be  conducted  to  the  H6tel  de  Ville,  there  to  render 
your  account."  She  made  a  signal.  They  gave  him 
no  time  to  reply.  They  threw  themselves  upon 
him  ;  they  dragged  him  towards  the  Place  de  la 
Greve. 

So  he  died.  But  Theroigne  did  not  stay  to  see  the 
end  ;  she  hastened  to  help  others  to  free  the  prisoners. 
When  the  search  was  over,  the  captives  freed,  The- 
roigne exclaimed  :  "  What,  citizens  !  shall  we  leave 
this  fortress  standing  to  menace  us  anew  with  its  fatal 
tyranny  ?  No  ;  we  must  raze  it  to  the  ground.  We 
must  leave  the  spot  now  occupied  by  its  walls  free  to 
the  air  that  will  disperse  the  despotic  miasma  it  has 
exhaled." 

This  speech  was  received  with  the  acclamations  it 
deserved,  and,  placing  her  in  an  arm-chair  which  had 
escaped  destruction  when  the  Governor's  house  was 
burnt,  they  crowned  her  with  laurels  and  carried  her 
in  triumph  to  the  Hotel  de  Ville,  the  crowd  waving 
aloft  branches  laden  with  foliage,  and  uttering  cries  of 
victory. 

"It  is  the  triumph  of  beauty,"  remarked  a  voice. 
It  was  Lafayette  speaking. 

Romancists  of  the  class  to  which  Lamothe-Langon 
belongs  are  plausible  only  up  to  a  certain  point.  Be- 
yond that  they  are  carried  away  by  their  own  visions. 
The  arm-chair  saved  from  the  flames,  and  the  part 


The  Patriot  79 

played  by  Lafayette  in  the  scene,  are  altogether 
absurd. 

Theroigne's  own  account  of  the  same  day  is  refresh- 
ing in  its  simplicity  after  the  bombast  of  her  chroniclers. 
"I  was  at  the  Palais  Royal,"  she  says  in  her  "Con- 
fessions," "when  the  news  came  that  the  Bastille  was 
taken.  The  populace  gave  way  to  a  noisy  and  pro- 
longed pleasure.  Many  wept  for  joy,  crying  that 
there  would  be  no  more  Bastille,  no  more  lettres  de 
cachet"  It  seems  very  unlikely  that  she  should  have 
invented  that  natural  remark,  but  simplicity  was,  of 
course,  her  role.  Denials  were  her  safe  course,  since 
there  was  no  proof  against  her.  Her  accuser,  the 
Chevalier  Maynard  de  la  Valette,  in  his  notes  entitled 
"Dires  et  Aveux  de  Demoiselle  Theroigne,"  declares 
she  was  present  when,  after  the  taking  of  the  Bastille, 
de  Launay  was  massacred,  that  she  wished  to  search 
the  cells  and  release  the  prisoners.  Dressed  as  a  man, 
her  musket  on  her  shoulder,  she  hurried  through  the 
streets  of  the  capital.  She  saw  the  scene  with  her 
own  eyes,  he  insists  ;  she  saw  the  Prince  de  Lambesc 
trample  an  old  man  to  death  under  the  hoofs  of  his 
horse.  That  was  on  the  i2th.  It  was  her  word 
against  her  accusers,  and  Theroigne  adhered  to  her 
original  statement.  In  spite  of  several  assertions  to 
the  contrary,  her  name  does  not  appear  in  the  lists 
of  the  "citoyens  vainqueurs  de  la  Bastille  "  contained 
in  the  national  archives,  on  which  are  inscribed  those 
of  some  six  thousand  insurrectionists. 

Nor,  in  spite  of  her  supposed  exhortation  to  the 
people  to  raze  the  Bastille  to  the  ground,  does  she 
mention  a  word  in  her  "  Confessions  "  concerning  the 


8o  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

demolition  of  the  fortress.  This  work  was  officially 
ordered  the  day  after  the  surrender,  and  was  pursued 
without  interruption  until  May  I5th,  1791.  It  was 
directed  by  the  patriot  Palloy,  who  thought  only  of 
the  glory  of  his  task  and  not  at  all  of  the  money  it 
might  have  brought  him.  He  gave  away  a  number 
of  interesting  objects  found  in  the  prison,  and,  later, 
was  reduced  to  indigence.  The  materials  of  the  edifice 
were  removed,  and  some  of  the  stones  were  employed 
in  the  construction  of  the  upper  part  of  the  Pont  de 
la  Concorde.  The  site  remained  open,  and  various 
plans  were  put  forward  for  its  disposal.  Palloy  wished 
it  to  be  turned  into  a  Place  de  la  Liberte,  in  which  a 
simple  but  majestic  column  should  stand.  Theroigne 
desired  that  a  palace  should  be  erected  there,  in  which 
the  sittings  of  the  National  Assembly  were  to  be  held. 
She  made  a  stirring  speech  on  the  subject  before  the 
Club  des  Cordeliers,  and,  though  her  motion  was 
carried,  the  plan  fell  through.  Some  forty  years  after 
the  surrender  of  the  Bastille  the  Column  of  July, 
which  now  adorns  the  Place,  was  commenced,  the 
summit  being  crowned  by  a  bronze  Genius  of  Liberty. 
Theroigne  described  herself  as  a  mere  spectator 
during  the  demonstrations  of  July  I2th  to  the  I4th, 
but  she  admitted  taking  an  active  part  in  the  events 
of  the  i  yth  of  the  month,  when  Louis  XVI.  paid  a 
visit  to  Paris  to  consecrate  the  triumphs  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. Dressed  in  a  white  riding-habit  and  a  neat 
round  hat,  Theroigne  marched  in  the  ranks  of  the 
soldiers  to  meet  the  King.  He  had  taken  the  sacra- 
ment that  morning,  made  his  will,  said  farewell  to 
the  weeping  and  harassed  Queen,  and  set  forth  from 


The  Patriot  81 

Versailles  accompanied  by  some  of  the  Garde  du  Corps 
and  the  hundred  deputies  appointed  by  the  National 
Assembly  to  escort  him.  The  new  mayor,  Bailly, 
received  him  at  the  gate  and  handed  him  the  keys. 
As  he  drove  through  the  streets  of  Paris  the  people 
greeted  him  with  amity.  They  trusted  him  to  give 
them  food.  At  the  Hotel  de  Ville  Louis  was  met 
by  the  electors  of  Paris.  The  occasion  was  a  solemn 
one.  The  tricolour  was  everywhere  in  evidence.  The 
King  appeared  upon  the  balcony,  a  tricolour  cockade 
in  his  hat,  and  spoke  to  the  enthusiastic  people.  Then 
others  spoke,  among  them  Lally-Tollendal,  who  made 
a  telling  speech  and  became  the  real  hero  of  the  day. 
To  him  was  deputed  the  task  of  reporting  what  had 
taken  place  to  the  National  Assembly.  Meanwhile 
"the  Restorer  of  French  Liberty,"  wearied  with  his 
unusual  duties,  was  returning  to  the  palace,  still 
accompanied  by  the  hopeful  and  now  joyous  crowd. 

Thus  passed  Theroigne's  first  day  of  active  parti- 
cipation in  the  Revolution.  She  was  interested  in  the 
people's  attitude  when  they  cheered  the  King  at  the 
H6tel  de  Ville.  The  cries  of  "  Vive  la  Nation  !  "  had 
been  silenced.  They  were  soon  to  be  heard  again.  A 
partial  tranquillity  reigned  in  Paris,  and  the  highest  in 
the  land,  d'  Artois  and  Conde  amongst  them,  seized  the 
opportunity  to  flee  from  the  capital.  But  the  air  of 
security  was  a  treacherous  one,  liable  to  disappear  at  any 
moment.  Instances  of  minor  violence  occurred  now 
and  again.  Petty  thieving,  cases  of  knifing,  cudgelling, 
and  so  forth  made  the  streets  unsafe.  Marauders  grew 
bold  enough  to  tear  off  the  jewels  women  were  wear- 
ing and  remove  even  the  silver  buckles  off  their  shoes. 


82  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Ruffians  of  the  lowest  type  begged,  threatened,  and 
robbed  those  who  were  better  off  than  themselves. 

In  the  provinces  riots  broke  out  everywhere  and 
blazed  throughout  the  remainder  of  July,  August, 
and  the  beginning  of  September.  The  tocsin  rang  in 
villages  and  towns,  the  drums  rolled,  and  cannon  were 
mounted  ready  for  use.  Houses  were  broken  into 
and  destroyed.  On  July  3ist  the  town  hall  of  Strass- 
burg  was  pillaged.  The  populace  rushed  into  the 
building,  and  forthwith  there  was  <c  a  shower  of  shutters, 
sashes,  chairs,  tables,  sofas,  books  and  papers,  and 
then  another  of  tiles,  boards,  balconies,  and  fragments 
of  woodwork."  The  public  archives  were  scattered 
to  the  winds.  At  Maubeuge  in  July  the  rioters  forced 
open  the  prison,  demolished  the  octroi  offices  and 
harbour  offices,  and  carried  off  the  custom  and  excise 
stores.  Havoc  succeeded  havoc.  Furniture  was 
smashed,  valuables  thrown  into  the  street  and  trampled 
on,  eatables  demolished,  houses  left  empty,  ruined, 
blackened  by  fire,  or  hacked  about  so  as  to  be  un- 
inhabitable. 

The  spirit  of  revolution  spread  rapidly  through 
Caen,  Rouen,  Besan^on,  and  Lyons.  At  Troyes  the 
rioters  demanded  that  the  octroi  should  be  suppressed, 
since  this  had  been  done  in  the  capital.  Chateaux 
were  burning  and  their  owners  deserting  them  in  fear 
of  their  lives.  The  upheaval  was  terrifying,  and  in 
Paris  a  murmuring  undercurrent  testified  to  the  fact 
that  the  good  impression  made  upon  the  people  by  the 
King's  visit  was  speedily  dying  out.  Distrust  towards 
the  Court,  more  especially  towards  the  Queen,  was 
increasing  daily,  fed  by  suggestive  articles  in  new 


The  Patriot  83 

journals  calculated  to  inflame  the  people,  and  by  the 
stirring  denunciation  spoken  by  orators  at  hastily  im- 
provised gatherings.  Meanwhile  royalty  grasped 
nothing  apparently  beyond  its  own  divine  right,  and 
the  Queen,  proud  Marie-Antoinette,  would  fain  have 
brushed  aside  the  meaningless  signs  of  a  chaos  which 
she  could  not  understand,  and  which  she  regarded  as 
an  unwarranted  annoyance  which  must  and  should  be 
speedily  removed. 

Incidents  were  not  wanting  at  this  hour  to  fill  the 
heart  and  stir  the  imagination  of  Theroigne.  There 
was  Foulon,  the  old  man  not  unconnected  with  the 
story  of  hay  and  thistles,  hanged  to  the  lantern  once, 
twice,  three  times  before  he  died  and  his  head  struck 
off  to  be  carried  on  a  pike ;  Berthier,  who  was  butchered 
with  such  gross  accompanying  details  as  make  descrip- 
tion impossible.  At  these  things  she  shuddered,  but 
turned  her  attention  with  great  willingness  to  the 
exciting  meeting  in  the  National  Assembly  on  August 
4th,  when  the  reports  from  the  country  were  read  and 
new  decrees  adopted.  The  Declaration  of  the  Rights 
of  a  Man  and  of  a  Citizen — words  for  ever  on 
Th£roigne's  lips — was  passed  before  the  close  of 
August.  She  admitted  that  she  felt  an  irresistible 
enthusiasm  in  the  doings  of  the  legislative  body,  and 
in  order  the  better  to  assist  at  the  sittings  of  the 
Assembly  she  decided  to  go  and  live  at  Versailles. 
She  arrived  there  at  the  commencement  of  the  debates 
on  the  Declaration  of  Rights.  She  took  lodgings  in 
the  Rue  de  Noailles  with  a  widow  whose  name,  when 
questioned,  she  could  not  recollect,  although  she  was 
able  to  describe  the  exact  position  of  the  house  in 


84  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  turning  off  the  grand  avenue  leading  to  the  castle 
gates.  She  lived  at  Versailles  all  through  the  summer, 
and  there  made  the  acquaintance  of  Petion  and  of 
Joseph-Honore,  brother  of  the  Abb6  Si£yes.  Both 
these  friends  visited  at  her  house.  The  former  was  a 
lawyer  from  Chartres,  grizzled  though  not  old,  of 
sturdy  build,  and  with  a  fine  soul  for  the  violin.  The 
love  of  music  they  possessed  in  common  was  as  strong 
a  bond  as  their  love  of  the  people  between  Th£roigne 
and  the  future  mayor  of  Paris. 

In  September  the  Assembly  was  making  but  little 
progress  with  its  work,  and  want  of  confidence  in  its 
efficiency  became  more  and  more  marked.  Misery 
and  insecurity  increased.  The  Court  persisted  in  its 
nonchalant  policy.  Paris  was  defied  by  the  bringing 
in  of  additional  troops.  On  September  2 3rd  the 
Regiment  of  Flanders  was  marched  into  Versailles  to 
remain  stationed  there  as  a  precaution.  It  was 
customary  in  the  case  of  such  arrivals  to  entertain  the 
new-comers,  and  on  October  ist  a  great  banquet  was 
given  at  Versailles  by  the  officers  of  the  Bodyguard 
to  these  battalions.  The  festivities  became  the  occasion 
of  a  royalist  demonstration.  Tricoloured  cockades 
were  torn  off  and  trampled  under  the  feet  of  the 
revellers.  White  cockades  and  black  ones  for  the 
Queen  were  hastily  donned  in  their  place,  the  national 
toasts  supposed  to  be  in  usage  were  forgotten,  the 
company  sang  lustily :  u  O,  Richard  !  6  mon  roi  !  " 
Royalist  feeling  was  allowed  full  expression.  The 
Queen  openly  rejoiced  at  the  prospect  of  a  lightening 
of  her  burdens.  Were  not  there  people  enough  who 
were  good,  loyal,  and  true  ?  What  if  some  soldiers 


The  Patriot  85 

had  deserted  and  sided  with  the  populace  ?  What  if 
others  wavered  ?  Authority  must  be  re-established. 
Her  '  must '  was  law,  and  she  believed  it  would  be 
easily  carried  out.  She  had  the  indiscretion  to 
show  her  thoughts  and  to  express  approval  not  only 
of  the  spirit  with  which  the  banquet  went,  but  also 
because  the  royalist  acclamations  continued  throughout 
the  whole  of  the  next  day  and  echoed  the  singing  in 
her  heart. 

Meanwhile  these  signs  of  disaffection  to  the  Revo- 
lution, coming  to  the  ears  of  the  people  in  an  ex- 
aggerated form,  caused  immediate  alarm  and  suspicion 
amongst  them.  Something  must  be  done  to  hinder 
the  royalists  from  giving  expression  to  these  unde- 
sirable sentiments. 

The  King  should  be  brought  to  Paris  with  as  little 
delay  as  possible.  The  people  willed  it.  They  had 
suffered  as  much  as  they  would  suffer.  It  was  time 
to  ameliorate  the  conditions  of  starvation  under  which 
they  laboured.  Thousands  were  ready  to  submit 
plans  to  this  end,  and  to  direct,  control,  advise,  even 
lead  those  who  would  become  responsible  for  organi- 
sing them.  Hunger  had  so  far  invaded  the  homes 
of  the  poor  that  maddened  women  were  ready  to 
sacrifice  life  in  redressing  the  horrors  which  were 
causing  themselves  and  their  children  slowly  to  perish. 
If  there  was  no  bread  in  Paris,  they  would  fetch  it 
from  Versailles,  and  fetch  those  too  whose  duty  it  was 
to  see  they  were  supplied.  Their  opportunity  came. 
<c  Men  made  the  i4th  of  July,"  says  Michelet,  <c  the 
6th  of  October  was  the  day  of  women.  Men  took  the 
royal  Bastille,  women  took  royalty  itself."  Because 


86  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  complaints  of  man  did  not  receive  the  attention 
their  urgency  demanded,  a  woman  organised  a  revolt 
among  members  of  her  sex.  She  ran  to  the  Cafe  de 
Foy,  a  meeting-place  where  agitators  swarmed,  and 
there  she  loudly  denounced  the  royalists.  Th£roigne 
was  not  present.  Neither  was  she  in  the  Halles  when 
a  young  woman  beating  a  drum  gathered  her  sisters 
round  her  and  marched  them  to  the  Hotel  de  Ville. 
There  were  hundreds  of  them,  washerwomen,  bare- 
footed beggars,  street-rovers,  seamstresses,  flower-girls, 
scavengers,  who  followed  their  leaders  into  the  town 
hall,  and  tore  or  burned  all  the  documents  on  which 
they  could  lay  their  hands,  saying  there  had  been 
enough  scribbling  while  they  were  starving — they 
meant  to  have  more  practical  help. 

Maillard  saved  them  from  riot  and  disaster  by 
offering  to  lead  them  to  Versailles,  and  so  the  march 
began,  cannon  clattering,  pikes  bristling,  hair  streaming, 
arms  swinging,  women's  garments  fluttering  in  the 
breeze.  Some  men  wore  women's  clothes,  but  were 
distinguished  by  hairy  chins  and  raucous  voices. 
They  helped  to  swell  the  ranks  of  those  who  were 
to  advance  against  the  military,  in  the  hope  that 
soldiers  would  not  fire  on  women. 

That  was  a  tramp  to  Versailles  of  hungry  desperate 
human  beings,  all  intent  on  one  purpose,  all  full  of 
protest — against  the  Queen  ! 

That  day  Marie-Antoinette  visited  the  Petit 
Trianon  for  the  last  time  and  looked  regretfully  at 
the  depredations  of  early  autumn  among  her  flower- 
beds. She  saw  nothing  symbolic  in  this  decay.  No 
thought  of  the  dissolution  with  which  the  monarchy 


The  Patriot  89 

was  threatened  entered  her  mind.  But  a  messenger 
came  to  fetch  her  to  the  palace,  and  there,  as  she 
faced  the  first  angry  mob  it  had  ever  been  her  fate 
to  see,  she  must  surely  have  reflected  on  the  triumphal 
entry  into  Paris  she  had  made  as  Dauphine,  when  the 
people  had  cried  themselves  hoarse  in  praising  her 
and  her  life  had  opened  full  of  a  roseate  promise 
which  had  enchanted  her.  Years  had  passed  since 
that  time,  dangerous  years  in  which  the  rosy  prospect 
had  gradually  faded,  vanished,  and  been  replaced  by 
black  menace.  In  that  hour  long  ago  she  had  visited 
her  people  to  win  their  love  ;  at  this  hour  in  the 
present  the  people  visited  her  to  refuse  hers  with 
scorn.  Horrible  threats  they  voiced  against  her,  loud 
curses  and  expressions  so  coarse  that  it  seemed  im- 
possible women  could  have  spoken  them.  In  a  frenzy 
they  swore  to  cut  her  throat,  and  to  scatter  her  bones 
to  the  winds.  They  were  maddened  by  suffering, 
these  women,  and  in  their  madness  meant  to  make 
"  the  Austrian "  suffer  too.  In  this  they  were  to 
succeed,  before  many  days  had  passed,  better  than 
they  would  have  believed  possible.  And  Theroigne — 
where  was  she  ? 

Carlyle  says  the  brown-locked  demoiselle  with  pike 
and  helmet  acted  gunneress  "  with  haughty  eye  and 
serene  fair  countenance,"  comparable,  some  thought,  to 
Joan  of  Arc,  others  to  Pallas  Athene.  "To  horse," 
cries  de  Goncourt,  "  when  the  hour  of  October  struck, 
with  red  plumes,  riding-habit  of  red  silk,  this  radiant 
Penthesilea,  this  Amazon  of  Rubens,  riding-whip  in 
hand,  pistols  in  her  girdle,  galloping  in  her  triumph, 
in  front  of  the  rabble,  smiling,  with  sleeves  rolled 
6 


90  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

to  the  elbow — it  is  the  beauty  of  Li6ge,  bringing  to 
Versailles  pikes  which  are  asking  for  heads  and 
women  who  demand  the  destruction  of  the  Queen." 
Lamartine  too,  not  to  be  behindhand,  writes  :  "  On 
the  days  of  October  she  had  led  the  women  of  Paris 
to  Versailles,  on  horseback,  by  the  side  of  the  ferocious 
Jourdan,  called  c  the  man  with  the  long  beard/  She 
had  brought  back  the  King  to  Paris  :  she  had  followed 
without  emotion  the  heads  of  the  Gardes  du  Corps, 
stuck  on  pikes  as  trophies."  But  for  sheer  imagina- 
tion Lamothe  Langon  again  outrivals  all  other 
accounts  and  describes  Th6roigne's  doings  in  those 
early  days  of  October  with  additional  details  unheard 
of  elsewhere. 

The  tocsin  woke  Theroigne  from  a  stupor.  For 
four  days  and  four  nights  she  had  not  had  a  moment's 
rest.  She  had  been  indefatigable,  running  hither  and 
thither  stirring  up  the  people.  Mounted  on  a  wagon, 
seated  on  a  board,  she  described  to  the  people  at  every 
street  corner  what  had  happened  at  the  banquet  on 
October  ist.  She  aroused  their  anger,  excited  their 
fury,  demanded  vengeance  in  the  name  of  the  national 
cockade  which  had  been  insulted. 

The  crowd  applauded  ;  it  pressed  round  her.  She 
hurried  from  place  to  place — from  the  Palais  Royal  to 
the  Hotel  de  Ville,  to  the  Tuileries,  along  the  quays, 
over  the  bridges,  through  the  boulevards.  Everywhere 
crowds  gathered  to  hear  her  speak,  everywhere  she  was 
heard  with  attention  and  respect.  Mirabeau  blamed 
her  enthusiasm,  Bailly  thought  it  ill-timed,  Lafayette 
begged  her  to  be  less  heroic.  These  were  traitors  who 
called  themselves  moderate  patriots !  Robespierre, 


The  Patriot  91 

Danton,  and    Marat   applauded   her.     She   was   their 
inspiration. 

She  had  spent  the  night  in  the  streets.  When  she 
awoke  from  a  short  nap  she  saw  before  her  a  group  of 
women  armed  with  pistols  and  cudgels  ;  behind  stood 
men  with  pikes  and  halberds.  They  were  waving  flags, 
brandishing  their  arms,  growing  impatient.  When  her 
eyes  opened  she  was  greeted  by  the  cry  of  "  Vive  Meri- 
court,  la  jolie  Mericourt !  Vivat !  Vivat !  " 

She  stood  up,  there  where  she  had  snatched  an  hour's 
sleep  under  the  statue  group  of  Louis  XIV.  in  the 
Place  des  Victoires,  there  where  some  kind  friend 
had  thrown  over  her  a  protecting  coverlet,  and  spoke 
to  the  people. 

"  Friends,  comrades,  citizens,"  she  said,  "  we  must 
not  waste  time  here.  At  Versailles  our  cockade  was 
profaned.  At  Versailles  we  must  demand  vengeance. 
I  thank  you  for  your  care  of  me  ;  offer  it  rather  to 
the  country  which  has  more  need  of  it." 

A  unanimous  shout  of  approval  filled  the  air.  The 
people  embraced  one  another,  shook  hands  and  kissed. 
They  crowded  round  Theroigne  to  seize  her  hand  and 
to  kiss  that  too.  "  Follow  me,"  she  cried,  "  follow 
me  to  Versailles."  A  responsive  roar  burst  from  a 
thousand  throats. 

"  We  want  bread,"  she  went  on :  "  let  us  seek  it 
at  Versailles.  The  people  have  been  insulted.  Where  ? 
At  Versailles.  Where  shall  they  be  avenged  ?  At 
Versailles.  Where  are  the  tyrants  ?  Who  are  they  ? 
The  aristocrats  at  Versailles.  Where  are  the  deputies, 
our  liberators  ?  At  Versailles  again.  It  is  from  there 
they  menace  us,  there  they  prepare  our  punishment, 


92  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

there  where  our  enemies  plot  to  harm  us.  Let  us  go 
to  them,  let  us  stop  them  in  their  wicked  courses, 
let  us  judge  them,  sacrifice  them,  and  when  their 
corpses  lie  stretched  where  we  have  slain,  people  will 
see  them  and  cry,  *  National  justice  has  passed  this 
way/  " 

After  this  moving  speech  the  crowd  marched  to  the 
Hotel  de  Ville.  There  stood  Maillard.  At  a  sign 
from  him,  Theroigne,  rallying  her  feminine  battalion, 
started  for  Versailles.  She  was  at  the  head  of  some 
two  or  three  thousand  citoyennes,  as  well  as  three  or 
four  hundred  good  patriots.  On  the  road  they  danced, 
they  sang,  they  joked,  they  cried  "  Vive  la  Nation  !  " 
and  "Vive  Mericourt  !  "  Thus  in  due  course  they 
reached  Versailles.  .  .  .  ! 

But  Theroigne,  in  her  u  Confessions,"  tells  a  very 
different  story.  How  could  she  march  with  the  women 
to  Versailles,  when  she  was  already  there  ?  It  was 
stupid,  she  thought,  of  people  to  make  such  statements. 
She  had  been  staying  near  the  palace  the  whole  summer, 
and  on  the  evening  of  October  £th  she  had  seen 
the  draggled  procession  of  the  women  arrive.  They 
had  started  at  sunrise  from  Paris,  every  woman  met 
with  on  the  way  being  urged  into  the  ranks,  which 
grew  and  swelled  as  each  mile  passed.  At  first  they 
shouldered  high  their  improvised  arms  and  grumbled 
loudly  at  starvation.  But  after  trudging  weary  miles 
they  had  no  breath  left  to  cry  for  bread.  Rain  and 
mud,  hunger  and  fatigue,  sobered  the  most  eager 
amongst  them — at  least  until  there  was  a  chance  of 
practical  gain  by  shouting.  Market-women  and  fish- 
wives, kitchen  wenches,  thieves,  slatterns,  and  worse, 


The  Patriot  93 

the  scum  and  rabble  of  the  female  population  of  Paris, 
"  ten  thousand  Judiths,"  nearing  their  journey's  end 
started  clamouring  anew  for  food,  cried  "  Vive  le  Roi  !  " 
and  sang  u  Henri  IV."  and  patriotic  songs  in  tuneless 
voices. 

Maillard  had  done  his  work  well.  He  had  brought 
a  straggling  mob  of  despairing  women  within  range 
of  royalty  and  legislation.  He  took  some  into  the 
Assembly  House,  where  it  was  arranged  that  a  depu- 
tation should  go  to  the  King.  Louis  XVI.  had 
been  brought  back  hastily  from  hunting,  and,  gazing 
from  the  palace  windows,  saw  that  strange  doings  were 
afoot. 

Mounier  agreed  to  lead  the  women  into  the 
royal  presence,  and  insisted  on  a  calm  and  dignified 
diplomacy.  It  was  no  light  task  he  undertook,  as 
appears  from  his  own  account  :  "  The  women  crowded 
round  me/'  he  writes,  "  declaring  that  they  wanted 
to  accompany  me  to  the  King's  palace.  I  had  much 
trouble  to  make  them  understand  that  only  six  would 
be  able  to  see  the  King,  but  that  did  not  prevent  a 
large  number  from  swelling  the  procession. 

"  We  were  on  foot,  in  the  mud,  with  a  heavy  rain 
falling.  A  considerable  crowd  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Versailles  lined  both  sides  of  the  avenue  which  led  to  the 
chateau.  The  women  of  Paris  formed  various  groups, 
mixed  with  a  certain  number  of  men,  for  the  most  part 
dressed  in  rags  and  tatters,  their  appearance  ferocious 
and  their  gestures  menacing.  They  were  armed  with 
muskets,  old  pikes,  hatchets,  iron  sticks,  and  large 
poles.  ...  A  party  of  armed  men  approached  us  to 
escort  the  deputation.  The  strange  and  numerous 


94  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

cortege  by  which  the  deputies  were  assailed  was  taken 
for  a  riotous  mob  ;  the  Garde  du  Corps  rushed  at  us 
and  dispersed  us  in  the  mud.  .  .  .  We  rallied  and 
thus  advanced  to  the  chateau.  We  found  ranged  on  the 
square  the  Garde  du  Corps,  a  detachment  of  dragoons, 
the  Regiment  of  Flanders,  the  Swiss  Guards,  the 
Invalides,  and  the  militia  of  Versailles.  We  were 
recognised  and  received  with  honour.  We  crossed 
between  the  lines  and  had  great  difficulty  to  prevent 
the  crowd  from  following  us.  In  place  of  the  six 
women  to  whom  I  had  promised  an  entry  into  the 
palace,  I  had  to  admit  a  dozen." 

Before  the  palace  stretched  the  wide  Place  d'  Armes, 
guarded  all  along  the  gilded  railings.  Through  the 
three  avenues  which  diverge  into  the  Place  the  scum 
of  the  crowd  frothed  and  bubbled.  The  women 
tempted  the  soldiers  with  pence  and  caresses.  They 
acted  with  the  coarsest  motives  and  stirred  up  wicked 
passions.  Corruption  was  at  work. 

Within  the  palace  council  followed  council.  The  King 
received  the  deputation  gracefully  ;  the  Queen,  so  near 
to  danger,  so  unaware  of  bodily  peril,  used  her  quick 
brain  to  think  of  some  way  out.  What  was  it  to  be  ? 
Flight  ?  Retirement  to  a  neighbouring  town  perhaps  ? 
At  one  time  the  order  was  given  that  horses  should  be 
harnessed.  How  to  escape  from  the  clamouring  mob 
outside  !  The  rain  had  ceased,  but  clouds  still  rolling 
up  merged  into  the  darkness  of  early  evening.  From 
the  palace  windows  the  shining  wet  stones  of  the  court- 
yard looked  uninviting,  and  beyond  the  railing,  out 
there  in  the  road,  the  wild  beasts  clamoured  for  their 
prey.  One  bright  spot  remained  in  all  that  gloom. 


The  Patriot  95 

Lafayette  was  marching  from  Paris  with  his  men.  The 
troops  still  stood  at  guard,  their  lines  unbroken. 
Would  they  have  to  be  withdrawn  before  he  joined 
them  ?  On  that  point  the  issue  of  the  day  might  hang. 

The  main  body  of  women  had  sought  shelter  from 
the  downpour  anywhere  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
palace.  As  it  cleared  some  came  forth  again  and  the 
crowd  increased  ;  the  murmuring  and  jostling  grew 
ever  more  pronounced.  Theroigne,  who  had  spent  the 
afternoon  at  the  sitting  of  the  National  Assembly,  had 
come  out  at  five  o'clock  to  see  the  crowd  of  women, 
and  moved,  alert  and  eager,  from  group  to  group, 
questioning,  expostulating,  praising  their  courage,  and 
aching  with  sympathy  for  their  suffering.  Her  mother- 
heart  was  full  of  love  for  them — such  mother-love  as 
since  her  babe  had  died  had  had  no  other  outlet.  She 
gave  it  to  the  people  there  and  then. 

She  had  left  the  Assembly  Hall  before  the  deputies 
separated,  and  her  friend  Petion,  meeting  her  later, 
offered  to  take  her  home  out  of  the  rain  and  the  mud 
and  away  from  the  sights  of  misery.  But  she  refused. 
She  preferred  to  see  what  was  going  on.  "  I  went 
with  him,"  she  says  in  her  u Confessions,"  "to  the  corner 
of  my  street,  where  he  left  me.  I  pushed  my  way 
through  as  far  as  the  barrier.  There  I  saw  on  one 
hand  the  Regiment  of  Flanders,  on  the  other  the  Body- 
guard and  the  people  armed  with  guns.  Pushing  my 
way  along,  I  met  three  or  four  unfortunates  who  were 
weeping.  They  said  to  me  that  they  had  not  had  a 
mouthful  of  bread  for  three  days.  I  took  them  near 
to  my  lodgings  and  fetched  bread  from  there  which 
I  divided  amongst  them." 


96  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

It  was  this  act  which  led  to  her  undoing.  She  was 
accused  of  bestowing  not  only  bread,  but  money,  and 
that  for  the  purpose  of  corrupting  the  soldiers. 

"  Already  Pallas  Athene  (in  the  shape  of  Demoiselle 
Theroigne),"  says  Carlyle,  "  is  busy  with  Flandre  and 
the  dismounted  Dragoons.  She,  and  such  women  as 
are  fittest,  go  through  the  ranks  ;  speak  with  an  earnest 
jocosity  ;  clasp  rough  troopers  to  their  patriot  bosom, 
crush  down  spontoons  and  musketoons  with  soft  arms  : 
can  a  man,  that  were  worthy  of  the  name  of  man, 
attack  famishing  patriot  women  ?  " 

Carlyle  gave  no  credence  to  the  oft-repeated  story 
that  Th£roigne  distributed  money  as  well  as  bread. 
"  Money  she  had  not,"  he  says,  "but  brown  locks,  the 
figure  of  a  heathen  goddess,  and  an  eloquent  tongue 
and  heart." 

Michelet  writes  of  the  soldiers  of  Flanders,  who 
were  asked  not  to  fire  :  "  Women  had  cast  themselves 
amongst  them,  entreating  them  not  to  hurt  the  people. 
A  woman  then  appeared  .  .  .  who  seemed  not  to  have 
walked  in  the  mire  with  the  others,  but  had  doubtless 
arrived  later  " — he  is  one  of  the  few  historians  who 
are  correct  in  not  making  Theroigne  lead  the  women 
to  Versailles.  "  She  threw  herself  at  once  among  the 
soldiers,"  this  handsome  young  woman,  <c  a  native  of 
Li6ge,  lively  and  passionate  .  .  .  interesting,  original, 
and  strange,  with  her  riding-habit  and  hat,  and  a  sabre 
by  her  side,  speaking  and  confounding  equally  French 
and  the  patois  of  Liege,  and  yet  eloquent.  She  was 
laughable,  yet  irresistible.  Theroigne,  impetuous, 
charming,  and  terrible,  was  insensible  to  every  obstacle. 
She  had  had  amours  ;  but  now  she  felt  but  one  passion 


The  Patriot  97 

(pne  violent  and  mortal  passion),  which  cost  her  more 
than  life  :  her  love  for  the  Revolution.  She  followed 
it  with  enthusiasm." 

Michelet  says  that  Theroigne,  having  addressed  the 
Regiment  of  Flanders,  gained  the  men  over  and  dis- 
armed them  so  completely  that  they  gave  away  their 
cartridges  like  brothers  to  the  National  Guard  of 
Versailles.  She  would  have  been  the  first  to  laugh 
heartily  had  she  heard  of  this  tribute  to  her  powers.  It 
was  also  said  of  her  that  she  spoke  to  the  sentinel  near 
the  Orangery  Gate  and  asked  him  to  close  it ;  whether 
to  keep  the  mob  from  going  in  or  royalty  from  coming 
out  (since  there  was  talk  of  flight),  history  says  not. 

Some  of  the  women  had  taken  shelter  in  the 
guard-house  of  the  Regiment  of  Flanders,  but  the 
largest  number  poured  into  the  Salle  des  Menus  to 
rejoin  their  friends  who  had  remained  with  Maillard. 
The  galleries  were  a  forest  of  pikes  and  iron  clubs.  The 
women  grew  more  and  more  turbulent,  the  men  rather 
more  quiet  and  subdued.  A  determined  lady  of  the 
gutter  seized  the  presidential  chair.  Others  equally 
determined  sprawled  over  the  benches  of  the  deputies, 
ousting  their  rightful  occupants.  They  shouted,  sang, 
and  gesticulated,  giving  unsolicited  embraces  to  all  they 
fancied,  and  scorning  those  they  disliked. 

The  women  of  the  deputation,  returning  from  the 
palace,  had  a  story  of  gracious  promises  to  tell.  At 
their  head  was  a  charming  spokeswoman,  Louison 
Chabray,  slim  and  fair,  who  had  had  the  supreme 
honour  of  feeling  the  King's  touch  upon  her  arm. 
But  all  their  enthusiasm  was  discredited.  The  mob 
jeered  at  their  optimism,  and  threatened  them  with 


9  8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

physical  violence.  They  escaped  with  some  difficulty 
and  returned  to  do  their  work  again  and  bring  back  an 
undertaking  in  writing. 

When  at  length  Mounier  came  back  into  the  As- 
sembly Hall,  bread  was  brought  in,  and  the  hungry 
crowd  ate  and  grew  good-humoured.  <c  Let  us  hear 
our  darling  mother  Mirabeau,"  cried  the  eager  women. 
But  Mirabeau  refused  to  speak  more  than  a  word, 
and  that  was  to  chide  them  for  interrupting  the 
deputies. 

Hour  after  hour  the  women  sat  in  the  house,  feed- 
ing when  they  could  get  food,  talking  amongst  them- 
selves, some  singing,  some  snoring.  The  drone  of 
the  speakers  continued.  Theroigne  had  long  since 
gone  home.  "  I  did  not  leave  my  rooms  again,"  she 
says,  "  although  I  knew  that  they  had  convoked  the 
deputies  for  a  night  sitting." 

All  that  evening  there  was  danger  of  rioting,  and 
the  royalist  troops  were  withdrawn  within  the  palace 
grounds.  At  midnight  Lafayette  arrived  at  Versailles 
with  twenty  thousand  National  Guards.  Now  at  last 
an  air  of  security  was  established,  and  the  Court  feared 
the  rebellious  people  no  longer.  There  was  darkness 
and  comparative  quiet  in  the  palace,  and  the  Queen 
slept.  But  the  wakeful  deputies  continued  discussing 
and  confabulating  in  the  National  Assembly,  still  sur- 
rounded by  unwashed  women  in  soaking  rags,  who 
occupied  the  seats  usually  reserved  for  beauty  of 
the  highest  rank,  richly  apparelled.  And  Theroigne 
slept  too,  or  says  she  slept.  On  the  truth  of 
her  statement  a  great  deal  depended.  She  was 
accused  of  being  one  of  those  who  broke  into  the 


The  Patriot  99 

palace  in  the  early  dawn.  It  is  difficult  to  believe  that 
she  slumbered  through  the  sitting  of  the  National 
Assembly,  because  she  never  missed  the  meetings  if 
she  could  help  it,  and  this  was  an  important  one. 

She  had  taken  lodgings  at  Versailles  for  the  sole 
purpose  of  being  present  at  them  all.  But  if  she  had 
owned  to  wakefulness  it  would  have  been  difficult  to 
prove  her  innocence. ' 

The  Queen  had  rested  perhaps  three  hours  when  an 
unexpected  noise  aroused  her.  She  heard  cries,  and  a 
curse  coupled  with  her  name.  The  crowds  were 
breaking  into  the  palace.  She  heard  the  snapping  of 
bars,  the  crash  of  doors  breaking  inwards,  the  feet 
of  the  rebels  in  the  passage.  It  was  growing  light, 
and  she  fled  from  her  apartments  for  her  life. 

Theroigne  swears  in  her  "  Confessions "  that  she  knew 
nothing  of  this  attempt  on  the  Queen's  safety.  At 
the  time  she  was  hastening  back  to  the  National 
Assembly.  At  six  o'clock  the  doors  were  not  yet 
opened.  The  National  Guard  was  on  duty  before 
the  palace,  and  she  saw  a  huge  crowd  assembled. 

"  I  moved  about  amongst  the  groups  of  people," 
she  declares,  "  in  order  to  overhear  what  was  being 
said.  They  spoke  about  the  aristocrats,  and  I  joined 
in  and  spoke  no  good  of  them.  Then  I  attempted 
to  glide  in  among  the  ranks  of  the  National  Guard, 
attracted  by  the  clamouring  of  the  people  as  they  were 
fighting  with  the  Bodyguard.  But  I  could  not  see 
what  was  going  on  distinctly. 

"  At  last  the  Assembly  opened  its  doors.  I  went  to 
my  usual  seat  in  Tribune  No.  6.  The  Hall  was  almost 
empty.  Only  a  few  of  the  deputies  of  the  noblesse  were 


ioo  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

present.  Under  the  circumstances  they  demanded  that 
the  National  Assembly  should  be  transported  to  the 
Hercules  Gallery  in  the  palace.  It  seemed  to  me  and 
to  all  those  present  in  our  tribune  that  a  removal  of  the 
representatives  would  wound  and  violate  the  decrees  of 
the  National  Assembly.  We  made  strenuous  opposi- 
tion to  this.  All  thought  it  would  be  better  if  a 
numerous  deputation  was  sent  to  the  King.  This 
was  agreed  upon." 

In  the  courtyard  a  group  of  armed  men  and  women 
surrounded  a  squad  of  the  National  Guard  and  made 
them  fire  on  the  King's  men.  Two  of  the  Bodyguard 
were  seized  and  their  heads  cut  off  and  impaled  on 
pikes.  Lafayette,  ever  on  the  alert,  ordered  the 
National  Guard  to  fire,  and  averted  further  bloodshed. 

The  mob  roared  "  Bring  the  King  to  Paris.1'  Louis 
showed  himself  on  the  balcony.  Marie-Antoinette 
came  too,  pale  and  dignified.  She  held  the  hands  of 
Madame  Royale  and  the  child  Dauphin,  but  the  people 
cried  "  No  children,  no  children,"  and  they  were  sent 
in  again.  It  is  all  so  well  known  ;  it  was  all  so  tragic. 
As  she  stood  there  a  man  in  the  crowd  levelled  his 
musket  as  though  to  fire  on  the  Queen.  She  did  not 
flinch,  and  Lafayette  stooping  to  kiss  her  hand  put  an 
end  to  hostile  demonstration. 

By  one  o'clock  the  King  had  promised  to  leave 
Versailles.  At  this  news  men  and  women  danced 
together  with  a  new  sense  of  fraternity.  Holding 
hands  they  sang  and  splashed  in  the  last  night's  mud. 
It  was  a  masquerade  of  death  and  hunger  and  captivity. 
Whither  were  they  about  to  drag  the  royal  family  ? 
A  start  was  made  towards  the  capital.  The  people, 


The  Patriot 


101 


having  captured  the  baker,  the  baker's  wife,  and  the 
baker's  boy,  were  temporarily  content.  They  marched 
on  foot,  they  rode  in  carts,  the  women  bestrode  the 
cannon.  The  heads  of  the  slain  soldiers,  raised  on 
pikes,  were  an  emblem  of  their  triumph,  and  on  the 
route  a  halt  was  made  at  the  hairdressers'  shop  to 
have  the  hair  powdered,  curled,  and  daubed  with 
cream.  Women  carried  loaves  on  pikes  or  branches  of 
trees.  Many  who  marched  that  day  were  to  remem- 
ber it  till  they  died. 

The  King  was  in  the  capital,  the  legislative  body 
followed  and  took  up  its  position  in  the  riding-school. 
Th£roigne  was  to  be  found  near  her  source  of  inspira- 
tion. But  the  debt  she  incurred  on  those  October 
days  was  still  to  be  paid.  On  August  6th,  1790,  a 
warrant  was  issued  by  the  Chatelet  for  her  arrest.  Re- 
ferring to  this  she  wrote  to  Perregaux  on  August  26th, 
from  Li6ge  :  "  I  have  been  very  astonished  to  learn 
this  news.  Was  it  to  be  expected  that  having  taken 
no  part  in  all  that  was  said  or  done  on  the  days  of  the 
5th  and  6th,  I  should  be  accused  of  complicity  in  the 
supposed  conspiracy?  ...  As  I  am  unable  to  judge 
how  far  the  malignity  of  those  who  have  denounced 
me  has  gone,  if  you  wish  to  do  me  a  service  it  will  be 
well  for  you  to  learn  as  much  as  you  can  of  the  crimes 
of  which  I  am  accused.  If  they  are  serious  I  shall 
have  to  defend  myself,  and  to  do  this  I  should  have  to 
utter  nothing  but  the  simple  truth." 

There  was  very  little  definite  evidence  against  her. 
The  Chatelet  began  the  inquiry  into  the  events  of 
October  in  the  following  December.  By  July  1790  it 
was  completed.  As  many  as  four  hundred  depositions 


102. . ......  A-Wom<an~of  the  Revolution 

were  included  in  the  printed  report,  and  of  these  only 
two  or  three  contained  a  reference  to  Th£roigne.  One 
man  deposed  to  having  seen  a  lady  he  believed  was 
Mile  Therouene  de  Montesurt  (sic)  on  the  morning 
of  the  6th,  amongst  the  c<  brigands  "  who  came  from 
Paris  to  Versailles,  dressed  as  a  man,  with  a  tall  gentle- 
man dressed  as  a  woman.  A  cure  of  the  name  of 
Frangois-Xavier  Veytard  declared  that  on  the  evening 
of  the  5th,  when  the  Regiment  of  Flanders  was  drawn 
up  in  two  lines  in  the  Avenue  of  Versailles,  a  lady 
dressed  in  a  red  riding-habit,  as  far  as  he  could  judge 
of  the  colour  in  the  dim  evening  light,  went  up  and 
down  the  ranks  of  the  soldiers,  holding  a  basket  in  her 
hand,  from  which  the  soldiers  took  small  packets  and 
soon  afterwards  withdrew  to  their  barracks.  He 
understood  that  this  woman's  name  was  Therouenne. 
His  evidence  was  given  on  March  9th,  1790. 

A  priest  called  Tournacheau  de  Montveran  made 
a  deposition  on  May  ist  following,  in  which  he  stated 
that  he  was  staying  at  an  hotel  in  the  Rue  de 
TOrangerie,  and,  in  company  with  several  friends 
between  4  and  5  o'clock  on  October  5th,  he  noticed 
from  the  window  several  women  and  men  disguised 
as  women,  amongst  whom  was  one  attired  in  a  scarlet 
riding-habit,  on  horseback.  She  was  followed  by  a 
jockey  also  dressed  in  red.  He  had  been  told  that 
this  woman,  whom  he  had  seen  previously  at  the 
Assembly  and  had  recognised  since,  was  Mile 
Therouenne  de  Mericourt.  She  had  approached  the 
sentinel  who  guarded  the  gate  near  the  Orangery,  and 
very  soon  afterwards  the  sentinel  had  closed  the  gate. 
Every  one  imagined  that  this  was  done  by  the  instruc- 


The  Patriot  103 

tions  of  the  said  Therouenne,  who  thereupon,  followed 
by  the  same  women,  went  off  through  the  Rue  de  la 
Surintendance. 

There  was  also  a  Mile  Gauthier  who,  looking  from 
a  window  in  the  Rue  de  1'Orangerie,  saw  a  woman  who 
was  so  tall  that  she  thought  it  must  be  a  man,  and 
this  person  was  accompanied  by  a  woman  of  ordinary 
figure  on  horseback,  dressed  in  a  riding-habit,  who 
dismounted  and  spoke  to  the  sentinel  at  the  gate  of 
the  Orangery. 

When  questioned  about  the  closing  of  this  gate, 
Theroigne  admitted  that  she  might  have  spoken  to 
the  sentinel,  but  that  when  she  did  so  the  gate  was 
shut,  and  consequently  she  could  not  have  been 
responsible  for  giving  an  order.  Nor  would  any 
soldier  of  the  Bodyguard  have  obeyed  her  instructions, 
for  she  was  not  known  to  them. 

The  accounts  vary  so  much,  and  are  so  vague,  that 
very  little  weight  can  be  attached  to  them.  Veytard, 
who  said  he  saw  Theroigne  distributing  small  parcels 
out  of  a  basket,  made  the  value  of  such  evidence 
dubious  by  declaring  that  it  was  not  light  enough  to 
distinguish  whether  she  was  wearing  a  scarlet  riding- 
habit.  When  questioned  as  to  the  colour  of  this 
garment,  Theroigne  acknowledged  that  she  possessed 
such  a  costume,  as  well  as  a  similar  one  in  white  and 
in  black,  but  that  she  could  not  remember  what  she 
wore  on  that  particular  day.  She  treated  with  con- 
tempt the  statements  of  the  witness  who  declared 
she  was  on  horseback.  a  If  any  one  can  prove  that 
I  was  riding,"  she  answered  boldly,  when  faced  by 
this  accusation,  "  I  consent  to  any  punishment  they 


104  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

may  care  to  inflict."  She  deliberately  denied  having 
seen  any  woman  moving  about  among  the  soldiers 
of  the  Regiment  of  Flanders  for  the  purpose  of  inciting 
them  to  break  rank  and  revolt.  In  her  opinion  the 
regiment  had  remained  calm  and  ranged  in  battle 
order. 

Apart  from  the  witnesses  who  had  named  Th£roigne 
more  or  less  accurately,  there  were  several  who  de- 
scribed her  without  mentioning  her  name.  A  certain 
Cornier  de  la  Dodiniere  said  he  saw  a  woman  dressed 
in  a  scarlet  riding-dress  and  round  hat  passing  from 
group  to  group  and  speaking  to  many  people.  The 
next  day  an  officer  of  the  National  Guard  of  Paris, 
meeting  him  in  a  cafe,  had  said  to  him  that  he  could 
not  forget  the  charming  appearance  of  a  woman 
dressed  all  in  red  whom  he  had  seen  haranguing  and 
exciting  his  men  to  go  to  the  National  Assembly 
and  to  seize  some  captives  there,  whose  names  she 
mentioned,  and  that  she  had  gone  so  far  as  to  address 
the  superior  officer  at  the  head  of  the  battalion,  who 
had  given  instructions  that  she  was  to  be  chased  away. 

Another  soldier,  of  the  name  of  Saint-Gobert,  a 
lieutenant  of  Volunteer  Chasseurs,  described  a  young 
and  pretty  woman  whom  he  had  noticed  in  the  ranks, 
dressed  in  a  riding-habit,  wearing  a  hat  with  black 
plumes,  who  spoke  to  the  volunteers  of  his  company, 
and  that  this  -lady  said  to  him  and  to  his  comrades 
that  they  were  to  go  to  the  National  Assembly,  and 
that  she  would  then  indicate  the  real  enemies  of  the 
nation.  He  had  begged  the  lady  to  withdraw,  and 
not  to  cause  disorder  in  the  ranks,  but,  not  succeeding 
in  making  her  take  her  departure,  he  had  fetched  the 


THEROIGNE   DE  MERICOURT. 
From  the  drawing  by  Raffet. 


105 


The  Patriot  107 

captain,  who,  when  he  arrived,  expressed  his  wish  that 
the  lady  would  go  away  without  delay.  She  had  at 
last  submitted  to  his  repeated  commands,  but  un- 
willingly, remarking  scornfully  as  she  went  that  she 
had  believed  she  was  appealing  to  good  citizens. 

Whatever  proofs  may  be  put  forward  to  clear 
Theroigne's  name  of  all  imputations  of  evil-doing, 
this  account  is  remarkably  characteristic  of  her  methods. 
It  may  or  may  not  have  been  she,  but  it  sounds  exactly 
like  her. 

La  Valette  in  his  accusation  said  that,  during  the 
riots  at  Versailles,  Theroigne,  dressed  like  a  man, 
had  mingled  with  the  crowd  and  distributed  bread. 
At  her  orders,  he  declared,  the  gates  of  the  Orangery 
had  been  closed  to  hinder  the  people  from  entering 
the  palace  grounds.  When  she  was  captive,  and  they 
were  driving  towards  Coblenz,  he  tried  to  sound  her 
on  these  points,  and  said  to  her  :  u  Mademoiselle,  1 
still  seem  to  see  you  leading  the  market-women  to 
Versailles.  It  was  an  imposing  sight.  And  you  at 
their  head  on  horseback,  you  looked " 

But  she  interrupted  him.  "  I  ?  There  you  make 
a  great  mistake,  monsieur.  I  was  not  in  that  famous 
procession  at  all.  I  was  not  living  in  Paris  at  that 
time.  I  stayed  at  Versailles  the  whole  of  the  summer 
of  1789." 

He  apologised  for  his  error.  He  said  he  must  have 
seen  her  in  the  streets  of  Versailles. 

"  I  did  what  others  did,"  she  answered,  "  neither 
more  nor  less.  I  wanted  to  watch  the  mob  arrive 
from  Paris." 

"  But  in  the  evening  you  entered  the  palace " 

7 


io8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

u  No,  monsieur.  I  did  not  go  into  the  palace,  nor 
even  into  the  palace  grounds.  The  Bodyguard  refused 
admittance  to  any  one.  I  only  went  as  far  as  the 
park  railings.  The  gates  were  all  shut." 

When  asked  why  the  crowd  had  massacred  two  of 
the  guard,  she  said  she  thought  that  the  soldiers  were 
themselves  to  blame  for  this  horrible  catastrophe. 
The  people  regarded  them  as  inveterate  partisans  of 
the  court.  Irritated  by  the  sullen  and  equivocal 
conduct  of  the  aristocracy,  they  wished  to  give  weight 
to  their  demands  by  showing  activity.  It  was  greatly 
to  be  regretted  that  they  should  have  resorted  to 
murderous  violence.  But  at  that  moment  it  was 
perhaps  inevitable  that  it  should  have  happened,  for 
it  was  necessary  to  use  force  to  obtain  liberty  from 
despotism.  If  royalty  had  voluntarily  acceded  to  the 
more  than  legitimate  claims  of  the  people,  who  had 
been  reduced  to  slavery  for  long  enough,  if  the  clergy 
and  the  nobility  had  freely  renounced  feudal  rights, 
there  would  have  been  neither  licence  nor  spilt  blood. 
"  Misery  begets  misery,"  she  cried,  <c  crime  begets 
crime."  The  peasant  who  is  born  into  the  world  has 
no  other  heritage  than  the  ill-treatment  of  his  lord. 
More  than  this  she  refused  to  admit  to  her  captor. 
It  was  the  parrot-like  cry  of  the  people,  which  she 
had  had  a  thousand  opportunities  of  hearing.  "  In 
my  eyes,"  she  continued,  "  aristocracy,  however 
illustrious  its  origin,  is  of  no  more  importance  than 
the  lowest  of  the  middle  classes,  or  the  most  obscure 
but  honest  peasant.  All  these  titles  and  dignities  are 
often  but  a  cloak  for  worthlessness.  .  .  .  Hereditary 
nobility  is  a  ridiculous  anomaly.  It  is  high  time  to 


The  Patriot  109 

open  the  eyes  of  the  people,  who  are  purposely  kept 
sunk  in  brutishness.  The  peasant  is  obliged  to  work 
and  to  moisten  with  his  sweat  the  land  which  belongs 
to  another,  whilst  the  other  declares  that  he  has  a 
right  to  exact  this  toil.  The  lord  of  the  land  illtreats 
his  subjects.  He  demands  from  them  a  blind 
obedience,  and  inflicts  tortures  worse  than  death.  The 
revenues  obtained  from  the  soil  do  not  belong  to 
those  who  cultivate  it,  and  the  fruit  of  their  rough 
toil  is  foolishly  dissipated  by  the  capitalists.  They 
scatter  and  waste  enormous  sums  in  gambling  and 
other  vices/* 

These  remarks  aroused  her  hearer.  In  a  passion  he 
enquired  how  she  dared  to  speak  of  the  aristocracy 
with  such  disdain.  "  Every  one  is  free  to  dispose  of 
his  goods  as  he  may  wish,  mademoiselle,"  he  cried 
angrily. 

"  I  do  not  deny  it,"  she  replied,  "  but  it  is  none 
the  less  true  that  it  is  the  result  of  flagrant  injustice 
that  a  small  portion  of  society  is  gorged  with  wealth 
whilst  thousands,  nay,  millions  of  brave  people  are 
living  a  life  of  misery — to  die  a  death  by  starvation. 
What  has  the  Government  done  to  remedy  this  fearful 
state  of  things.  Nothing  !  Absolutely  nothing  ! 
Ought  the  people  to  consent  to  suffer  for  ever  and  to 
want  necessities  when  so  many  aristocrats  have  super- 
fluities, and  plunge  into  the  grossest  of  pleasures  ! 
Never !  It  is  just  and  necessary  to  expel  all  these 
sluggards  and  idlers.  They  are  useless  ;  nay,  worse, 
they  are  harmful.  ..." 

The  Comte  de  la  Valette  trembled  with  passion. 
She  had  touched  on  a  weak  spot,  his  aristocratic  pride. 


no  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

He  thought  that  her  words  were  meant  specially  to 
humiliate  him.  He  cried  out  that  she  lied,  that  there 
was  not  a  word  of  truth  in  all  she  had  said. 

She  replied  boldly  that,  on  the  contrary,  she  had 
spoken  nothing  but  the  truth.  The  abuses  which  she 
had  described  must  end.  The  country  would  never 
know  happiness  until  it  was  delivered  from  the  crushing 
privileges  enjoyed  by  the  clergy  and  the  nobility.  It 
was  necessary  that  all  should  enjoy  freedom  as  well  as 
the  bread  to  which  they  were  entitled.  Then  she 
began  to  discuss  the  Rights  of  Man. 

La  Valette  refused  to  listen  to  her  any  longer.  At 
that  moment  the  carriage  in  which  they  were  travelling 
gave  a  jolt,  and  almost  overturned.  The  Count, 
mastered  by  his  ill-temper,  jumped  out,  and,  snatching 
the  whip,  beat  the  driver  soundly  for  his  clumsiness. 
Theroigne  begged  him  to  desist  in  the  name  of  all 
that  was  human.  Her  prayers  only  augmented  the 
fury  of  the  blows.  He  ceased  when  the  handle  of 
the  whip  smashed  in  his  hand,  and  throwing  away  the 
pieces,  he  cried,  u  So  much  for  the  Rights  of  Man." 

Theroigne  was  silent.     She  was  weeping  bitterly. 


CHAPTER   III 

THEROIGNE'S  CLUB 

THE  French  have  always  been  gregarious  and 
communicative.  They  have  always  loved  to 
discuss  their  interests,  and  to  express  in  words  their 
fears  and  agitations,  as  well  as  their  rejoicing  and 
admiration.  This  national  trait  was  remarkably  notice- 
able throughout  the  eighteenth  century.  It  was  the 
age  of  opinion.  The  thinkers  of  the  day  emulated 
one  another  in  making  public  their  ideas.  An  irre- 
sistible impulse  to  teach,  to  lead,  to  convert,  or  at 
least  to  state  probabilities  and  possibilities,  began  some- 
where near  the  close  of  Louis  XIV.'s  reign — that  is 
to  say,  in  the  youth  of  Voltaire  and  Rousseau — and 
increased  slowly  throughout  the  Regency,  more  quickly 
in  the  second  half  of  Louis  XV. 's  reign,  whilst  in  the 
seventies  and  eighties  the  impulse  became  uncontrol- 
lable. To  speak  one  must  have  an  audience,  and  to 
gather  an  audience  one  must  have  a  meeting-place.  In 
the  early  part  of  the  century  people  met  at  the  cafes 
and  in  the  salons  to  air  their  views  and  imbibe  the 
new  philosophical  ideas  that  were  spreading  rapidly 
through  the  country.  No  sooner  was  there  a  whisper 
of  revolt  than  these  places  became  inadequate  to  hold 
the  masses  who  wished  to  utter  volumes  of  complaints 
and  to  formulate  plans  for  the  amelioration  of  con- 

iii 


ii2  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

ditions.  A  new  outlet  had  to  be  found  for  them,  and 
was  found  in  the  shape  of  political  clubs.  At  first 
these  were  few  and  held  in  secret,  but  after  the  open- 
ing of  the  States  General  they  multiplied  in  numbers, 
subdivided  and  re-formed  until  they  became  a  recognised 
institution  of  revolutionary  France.  They  were  the 
best  medium  for  an  interchange  of  ideas,  and  they 
issued  pamphlets  and  journals  in  a  never-ceasing,  ever- 
increasing  stream. 

One  of  the  most  important  was  first  formed  by  a 
small  section  of  the  deputies  of  Brittany,  and  was 
called  the  Breton  Club.  Although  its  members  were 
full  of  the  new  ideas  which  were  spreading  everywhere 
they  did  not  in  any  way  hold  extreme  views  at  this 
time.  They  were  frankly  royalists.  But  as  time 
passed  a  new  tone  entered  into  the  debates.  On  June 
9th,  1789,  Boulle  wrote  of  the  society:  "For  some 
days  our  salon  has  been  the  rendezvous  of  all  good 
citizens."  Meetings  were  then  taking  place  every 
evening.  As  most  of  the  members  were  in  the 
National  Assembly,  the  meeting-house  of  the  club  was 
at  Versailles,  but  in  October  it  naturally  followed  the 
Court  and  legislative  body  to  Paris,  and  was  presently 
installed  in  the  Convent  of  the  Dominicans  or  Jacobins 
in  the  Rue  Saint-Honor£.  Although  the  official 
name  of  the  club  was  changed  in  February  1790  to 
the  Societe  des  Amis  de  la  Constitution,  it  was  soon  to 
be  known  far  better  by  the  title  of  the  Jacobins  Club, 
and  under  that  famous  name  became  a  political  force. 

The  great  difference  between  this  society  and  other 
political  clubs,  such  as  had  already  been  known  in 
England  for  a  century  and  a  half,  was  its  system  of 


Theroigne's  Club  113 

affiliation.  The  number  of  members  had  grown  so 
rapidly,  the  ideas  disseminated  by  the  club's  adherents 
were  so  popular,  and  its  endeavour  to  reach  Frenchmen 
—and  even  Frenchwomen — in  every  part  of  the  country 
so  insistent,  that  it  was  decided  to  form  a  nucleus  in 
each  town  of  people  who  held  the  same  ideas,  and  had 
similar  aims  to  those  who  had  easy  access  to  the 
mother-society  in  Paris.  Thus  was  born  a  mighty 
organism,  spreading  its  tentacles  throughout  France. 
As  was  to  be  foreseen,  with  the  growth  of  revolutionary 
ideas,  the  opinions  with  which  the  club  had  begun  its 
sittings  evolved  on  similar  lines,  the  strength  of  the 
extreme  Left  becoming  ever  more  and  more  a  pre- 
dominating factor. 

There  is  no  room  in  a  volume  which  purports  to 
be  a  biography  to  tell  the  history  of  the  clubs.  The 
ramifications  of  the  old  ones,  the  forming  of  new  and 
ever  more  daring  ones,  the  gradual  change  of  thought 
from  monarchism  to  republicanism  would  fill  volumes 
of  their  own.  But  because  one  aspect,  and  an  im- 
portant aspect,  of  Theroigne's  revolutionary  career 
was  closely  bound  up  with  the  clubs — she  frequented 
them,  she  did  her  utmost  to  be  elected  a  member  of 
one  of  the  most  important,  and  she  helped  to  organise 
one  of  her  own — some  digression  on  the  subject  of 
clubs  is  necessary.  Her  interest  in  them  led  her  to 
study  them  carefully  and  to  endeavour  to  grasp  and 
explain  the  changes  in  Paris  life  which  had  been  brought 
about  by  the  great  upheaval,  one  of  the  most  notice- 
able being  connected  with  this  very  question  of  the 
growth  of  the  political  societies.  It  is  a  baffling  point 
in  the  character  of  Theroigne  that,  considering  her 


ii4  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

irregular  youth  and  upbringing,  she  should  not  merely 
have  turned  to  the  exciting  and  stimulating  side  ot 
the  people's  fight  for  freedom,  but  preferred  to  throw 
her  whole  heart  into  her  desire  to  understand  the 
causes  of  their  wretchedness  and  the  serious  questions 
involved  in  attempting  to  obtain  a  better  state  of 
affairs.  She  must  have  been  possessed  of  powers  of 
reasoning  and  observation  superior  to  those  usually 
bestowed  upon  women  who  are  content  with  a  liveli- 
hood so  precariously  obtained  as  hers  had  been. 

But  Theroigne  was  a  law  unto  herself,  and  must  not 
be  judged  by  the  standards  applied  to  other  women 
of  her  class.  When  she  studied  the  matter  of  clubs 
she  found  that  they  were  springing  up  around  her 
like  mushrooms.  The  first  one  in  Paris  which  was 
really  worthy  of  the  name  had  been  opened  in 
April  1782,  by  Boyer,  in  the  Rue  Sainte-Nicaise.  It 
was  called  the  Club  Fran^ais.  Three  years  later  the 
Due  d'Orleans,  who  admired  everything  English  and 
American,  opened  a  Club  de  Boston.  But  it  was  not 
till  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution  that  the  real 
utility  of  club  life  became  apparent,  and  the  idea 
spread  so  quickly  that  there  were  soon  several  hun- 
dreds in  Paris. 

The  most  advanced  club  of  all  was  the  Club  des 
Cordeliers,  run  by  Danton,  Camille  Desmoulins, 
and  Marat.  The  Club  de  1789,  installed  near  the 
Palais  Royal,  revelling  in  dinners  under  the  auspices 
of  Sieyes,  Lafayette,  Bailly,  and  Mirabeau,  was  turned 
into  the  Club  de  la  Constitution  Monarchique,  its 
members  being  friends  to  despotism  under  the  mask 
of  moderation,  and  later  it  became  the  Feuillants. 


Theroigne's  Club  115 

The  motto  of  the  Club  des  Impartiaux  was  "  Justice, 
Truth,  and  Constancy."  The  Cercle  Social  had  a 
branch  society,  named  the  Confederation  Universelle 
des  Amis  de  la  Verite,  and  there  were  numerous 
others  of  importance,  all  with  views  more  or  less 
advanced,  because  clubs  with  moderate  ideas  had  but 
little  hold  on  the  popular  imagination. 

So  enormous  was  the  influence  wielded  by  these 
ever-spreading  organisations,  that  the  legislative  body 
began  to  see  a  danger  to  the  peace  of  the  country  in 
their  continued  growth,  and  in  1791  adopted  certain 
propositions  limiting  their  powers,  which  were  chiefly 
exercised  in  two  directions.  They  had  the  right  to 
petition,  and  used  it  by  presenting  to  the  Assembly 
addresses  which  were  in  reality  orders  in  the  disguise 
of  requests,  and  they  had  the  right  to  stick  bills  in 
public  places.  This  made  it  possible  for  them  to 
placard  Paris  over  at  any  moment  with  declarations 
which,  being  assimilated  speedily  by  the  man  in  the 
street,  evoked  a  chorus  of  similar  opinion  throughout 
the  breadth  of  the  country.  These  privileges  were 
to  be  curtailed,  and  for  that  purpose  the  assembly 
drew  up  certain  clauses,  declaring  that  no  society, 
club,  or  association  of  citizens  could  have  any 
recognised  political  existence,  could  exercise  the 
slightest  influence  over  the  acts  of  constituted  powers 
and  legal  authorities,  nor  appear  under  any  pretext 
collectively  to  present  petitions  or  form  deputations, 
or  to  assist  at  public  ceremonies  under  various 
penalties.  A  decree  to  this  effect  was  adopted  on 
September  29th,  but  in  practice  it  very  soon  proved 
inefficacious. 


ii 6  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

As  well  dam  a  flood  with  shifting  sand.     By  that 
date    the    clubs     had    become   an   ungovernable,    an 
incalculable    force,    and    no    legislative    means    could 
stop  their  clamour.     The  journals  alone  which  poured 
from    their    presses   were   capable    of  swaying    public 
thought.       Their    discussions     and     articles    filtered 
through  their  own    institutions    to    the   more  general 
if    less   highly   organised    groups    which    met    in    the 
salons,    the    cafes,    the    restaurants,    the    booksellers', 
and  libraries,  to  the  wine-shops,  and  the  gatherings  at 
street-corners  and  in  the  public  gardens.    All  these  were 
centres  of  commotion.     The  caf6s,  which  for  the  past 
fifty  years  had  been  the  resort  of  men  of  letters,  wits, 
dramatic  critics,  lawyers,  and  artists,  intent  on  discuss- 
ing the  latest   achievements   in   their   own    particular 
profession,  were  now  used  as  places  where  the  political 
measures  of  the  day  were  brought  up  for  debate,  and 
where  the  latest  news  from    the  Assembly   could    be 
gleaned  at  all  hours.     The  Caf£  Hottot  on  the  Terrace 
of    the    Feuillants   and   almost   at    the    doors    of  the 
Assembly  Hall,  and  the  Cafe  de  Foy,  at  first  patriotic, 
and  then  monarchic,  were  two  of  the  most  important. 
The  latter  in  its  second  stage  was  the  refuge  for  aristo- 
cratic disputants,  Knights  of  Saint  Louis,  soldiers,  and 
financiers,    with    huge   wigs    and    square-toed    shoes, 
armed  with  cudgels,  sword-sticks,  and  canes  weighted 
with  lead,   who    read    nothing  but    monarchical    pro- 
positions, uncovered  their  heads  whenever  royalty  was 
mentioned,   and   played  dominoes  to  while  away  the 
time  when  waiting  for  news.     The  Cafe  Procope,  once 
of  theatrical  fame,  had  to  change  its  style,  and  was  held 
in  suspicion  by  all  good  partisans  of  the  Revolution. 


Thcroigne's  Club  117 

Unless  a  cafe  took  a  political  tone  the  people  had  no 
use  for  it,  as  was  proved  by  the  speedy  passing  away  of 
the  Cafe  Flore,  whose  habitues  were  bound  by  a  vow 
not  to  mention  affairs  of  government.  The  Cafe  de  la 
Justice  was  frequented  chiefly  by  excited  legal  lights, 
the  Cafe  de  la  Republique  by  patriots  who  were  keen 
on  being  informed  in  the  speediest  and  most  reliable 
manner  of  what  was  going  on.  The  Cafe  de  Valois 
was  another  rendezvous  of  royalists — Rivarol,  for  in- 
stance, Champcenetz,  who  wrote  a  satiric  letter  about 
Theroigne,  and  Peltier,  who  was  one  of  the  fairest- 
minded  of  her  opponents.  In  May  1790  this  cafe, 
which  had  originally  been  founded  by  Abbe  Si6yes 
under  the  auspices  of  the  Due  d'Orleans,  became  such 
a  hot-bed  of  aristocracy  that  the  patriots  made  a  descent 
upon  it  and  cleansed  the  Augean  stables  with  fumes 
of  gin. 

Booksellers'  shops  were  found  convenient  for  the 
sale  of  royalist  and  counter-revolutionary  journals, 
brochures,  libels,  pamphlets,  and  printed  questions  of 
the  order  of  the  day.  They  were  sold  openly  and 
secretly.  Sometimes  there  were  printing-presses  on 
the  premises,  issuing  and  manifolding  publications  of 
a  seditious  nature  without  place  or  date  or  name. 
One  of  the  most  notorious  monarchical  booksellers  was 
Gattey,  whose  business  was  in  the  Palais  Royal.  He 
was  said  to  be  a  police  spy,  and  his  shop  was  invaded 
more  than  once,  his  stock  burned,  and  the  place  u  dis- 
infected of  the  breath  of  bad  citizens  "  by  fumigations 
of  vinegar  and  sugar.  A  complete  edition  of  the 
Actes  des  Apotres  was  sacrificed  at  one  of  these  holo- 
causts, and  at  length  Gattey  found  it  too  dangerous 


n8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

to  sell  this  scurrilous  royalist  paper  and  announced 
that  he  would  take  no  further  part  in  its  publication 
and  distribution. 

The  editors  and  chief  contributors,  Peltier,  Rivarol, 
Champcenetz,  Mirabeau,  Tonneau,  and  Suleau — The- 
roigne  knew  them  well  by  name,  and  hated  them 
well — usually  held  their  meetings  at  the  house  of  the 
Marquise  de  Champbonas.  The  paper  was  discussed 
and  made  up  at  the  Restaurateur  Beauvilliers,  near  to 
Gattey's  shop,  where  diners  evangeliques  were  held  to 
which  only  the  initiated  were  admitted.  The  apostles 
took  copious  notes  of  the  conversation  and  dished  it 
up  in  spicy  insults  addressed  against  the  patriots. 

Theroigne  was  as  frequently  the  subject  of  their 
coarse  jests  as  any  one.  The  attacks  on  her  make 
astonishing  reading.  By  what  virtue — or  vice — did 
she  become  the  butt  of  fifty  satirical  publications  ? 
Why  was  she  chosen  especially  to  be  pilloried  in  a 
hundred  ways,  as  patriot,  Amazon,  orator,  and  mis- 
tress ?  She  had  splendid  enemies — the  aristocrats — 
and  there  must  have  been  something  remarkable  about 
her  to  have  kept  her  so  persistently  an  object  of  their 
spite.  It  was  said  that  she  was  driven  to  madness 
by  their  satires  and  caricatures,  and  the  Petit  Gauthier 
described  a  raid  she  made  on  her  own  account  upon 
one  of  the  places  where  these  libels  were  on  sale. 
"The  brazen-faced  Theroigne,"  it  wrote,  "after  walk- 
ing the  day  before  yesterday  in  the  Camp  des  Tartares, 
in  the  Palais  Royal,  entered  a  shop  where  caricatures 
were  sold,  and  had  the  effrontery  to  say  to  the  dealer 
in  them,  that  if  she  continued  to  display  those  which 
ridiculed  other  people  besides  the  executive  powers, 


Theroigne's  Club  119 

the  nobility  and  the  clergy,  she  would  come,  accom- 
panied by  some  patriots,  and  tear  them  up."  The 
saleswoman  threatened  the  "ci-devant  pucelle  "  with  a 
burning  torch,  causing  her  to  flee  and  leave  one  of 
her  shoes  behind  her  in  her  haste. 

Besides    the    Petit    Gauthier,    otherwise    called    the 
Journal  de  la  Cour  et  de  la  Ville^  and  the  Actes  des 
Apotres,  her  chief  calumniators,  the  Sabbats  Jacobites, 
which  brought  into  fashion  the  word  "canaillocratie," 
and  the  Apocalypse  were  among  the  worst  offenders. 
The  standing  joke  referred  to  by  them  was  her  sup- 
posed   marriage    with    the    Deputy    Populus,    i.e.    the 
People.     Of  this  bon  mot  they  never  seemed  to  tire. 
It  was  turned  this  way  and  that  way  and  exploited 
for  all  and  more  than  it  was  worth.     A  play  on  the 
subject  ran   through  many  numbers  of  the  Actes  des 
Apotres,   and   was   eventually  published    separately   in 
1790  under  the  title  of  "Th£roigne  et  Populus,  ou  le 
triomphe  de   la   democratic,   drame    national    en   vers 
civiques."       Attached  was  a  "  Precis  sur  la  vie  de  Made- 
moiselle Teroigne  de  Mericour,"  in  which  her  supposed 
lover  is  described  in  satirical  terms.     Beaulieu  asserts 
that  she  had  never  met  the  deputy  for  Bourg-en-Bresse, 
who  was  at  this  time  aged  about  fifty-five.     "  Although 
Populus,"  remarks  the  writer,  describing  the  real  man, 
"is  only  four  feet   seven  inches  and  three  lines  tall, 
he   possesses    that    agreeable    sloping    curve    of    the 
shoulders  which  denotes  profundity  of  thought,  multi- 
plicity of  studies,  and  the  habits  of  meditation.     More- 
over,   although    he   is    between    thirty    and    sixty-five 
years  old,  he  does  not  wear  the  dissipated  air  which 
See  Appendix  A 


120  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

distinguishes  many  young  Frenchmen.  His  hair,  of 
the  most  beautiful  dappled  grey,  arranged  in  curls 
and  plastered  down  behind  his  ears,  suits  his  face 
remarkably  well,  giving  it  more  breadth  and  im- 
portance ;  and  behind  it  is  fastened  tightly  in  a  net 
and  bobs  about  on  his  shoulders,  giving  the  impres- 
sion of  the  august  and  majestic  character  of  one  who 
represents  the  nation.  Never  has  any  deputy  had 
more  the  air  of  a  deputy  than  this  honourable 
deputy." 

Naturally  enough  the  form  in  which  the  satires  were 
couched  was  one  that  had  especial  power  to  wound. 
Theroigne  was  not  the  only  one  subjected  to  the 
drastic  wit  of  the  royalists.  Monarchism  in  the  press 
never  ceased  to  aim  poisoned  darts  at  the  people,  and 
ironic  raillery,  lies,  and  calumny  fanned  the  flame  of 
hatred  and  gave  rise  to  insurrectionary  outbursts.  In 
many  respects  the  journals  have  small  historical  value, 
and  throw  little  light  on  the  course  of  events.  It  is 
enough  to  say  that  the  obscene  diatribes  of  the  aristo- 
crats denote  a  significant  lack  of  dignity  unpardonable 
in  the  governing  class. 

The  Revolutionary  journals,  on  the  other  hand,  were 
distinguished  by  an  earnest  belief  in  the  justice  of  their 
cause.  Whilst  the  royalists  were  content  to  jest 
coarsely  in  and  out  of  season,  Desmoulins,  Brissot, 
and  Marat  were  voicing  the  call  of  freedom  in  their 
respective  journals — Les  Revolutions  de  France  et  de 
<Brabanty  Le  Patriotey  and  L }  Ami  du  Peuple. 

The  clubs,  the  caf6s,  the  book-shops,  with  their  vast 
stream  of  topical  publications,  were  thus  the  means 
through  which  the  new  and  revolutionary  ideas  spread 


Theroigne's  Club  121 

like  wildfire  to  the  bulk  of  the  people,  indiscriminately, 
without  favour  or  that  personal  and  social  note  which 
relationship,  acquaintance,  or  friendship  gives.  Yet 
this  element  existed  and  must  not  be  undervalued. 
It  was  to  be  found  chiefly  among  the  feminine  gather- 
ings in  the  semi-privacy  of  the  salons.  Those  of  the 
capital  had  changed  in  tendency  at  the  first  signs  of  the 
struggle  between  the  classes  and  the  masses.  Philoso- 
phy, reform,  and  revolution  formed  the  new  keynotes 
of  intercourse ;  charm,  culture,  literature,  and  learning — 
all  the  graces  of  the  old  regime,  in  short — were  relegated 
to  the  background.  Earnestness  superseded  gaiety, 
discussion  took  the  place  of  chat  and  gossip,  and 
personal  ambition  pushed  aside  social  intimacy.  Some 
of  the  gatherings  were  turned  into  conferences  "  like 
tragedies  without  women,'*  some  were  political  whirl- 
pools of  rage  and  ferment,  some  were  training-schools 
for  orators  and  pamphlet-writers,  and  again  others  were 
not  unlike  forcing-houses  where  guests  were  to  be 
converted  with  the  least  possible  delay  to  a  belief  in  the 
"  illusion  of  the  happiness  of  humanity."  All  of  them 
without  exception  were  touched  by  the  dread  shadow 
of  coming  trouble  and  were  enshrouded  in  the  dark 
cloud  of  suspense. 

In  Mme  Necker's  salon  friends  of  the  ministers 
assembled,  and  she  tried  to  win  from  the  Abbe  Sieyes 
and  Clermont-Tonnerre  the  good  opinion  of  the 
National  Assembly  for  her  husband.  Mme  de  StaeTs 
social-political  activity  dated  from  1786.  Mme  de 
Simiane  and  Mme  de  Coigny's  receptions  were  at  their 
height.  Mme  de  Tesse  opened  wide  her  doors  to 
exponents  of  the  new  ideas.  The  Princess  von  Hohen- 


122  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

zollern  received  politicians  of  the  Left,  amongst  them 
Beauharnais,  Abbe  Dillon,  Barnave,  and  the  Lameths. 
At  Mme  de  Beauharnais's  house  Dorat,  Colle,  Pezay, 
and   Bonnard   held  meetings,  which  were    homely    in 
character.     The  Comtesse  de  Genlis — Walpole  referred 
to  her  later  as  the  too-well-known  woman  who  fled  to 
Switzerland — entertained  Brissot,  Camille  Desmoulins, 
and  the  friends  of  the  Due  d'Orleans.     The  Duke  of 
Bedford  gave  balls  to  the  Revolutionaries.     The  wife 
of  Talma,  the  spirituelle  Julie,  gathered  in   the  Rue 
Chantereine    many    guests    of    political     importance, 
Roucher,    Roland,    the    painter    Greuze,    the    orator 
Vergniaud,  and  Marie-Joseph  Chenier,  who  was  later 
to  be  associated  with  Theroigne  in  the  organisation  of 
the  fete  to  the  soldiers  of  Chateauvieux.     After   the 
death  of  her  husband   Mme   Helvetius   settled  in  her 
country   house   at    Auteuil    with   her   two   daughters, 
Mme  de   Mun  and   Mme  d'  Andlau,  whom   Franklin 
had   rechristened    "  the    stars."     A   large    number    of 
thinkers  frequented  this  salon — Condorcet,  the  aristo- 
crat-republican, Cabanis,  Mirabeau's  doctor,  who  married 
Mme    de    Condorcet's    sister,    Volney    the    traveller, 
Chamfort  the  witty  moralist,  whose  sallies,  said  Mme 
Roland,  "  make  you   laugh    and    think   at   the    same 
time — a   very    rare   occurrence."     Mirabeau    was    his 
friend,  and  Sieves  profited  by  his  ideas.     "  I  have  just 
composed    a   work,"    said    Chamfort    one    day   to    de 
Lauraguais.    "  Oh,  a  book  ?  "  inquired  the  latter.    c'  No, 
not  a  book  ;  I  am  not  so  foolish.    Only  the  title  of  a 
book  ;  but  the  title  is  everything.     1  have  given  it  to 
Sieyes.    He  can  say  what  he  will ;  people  will  remember 
nothing  but  the  title"— which  was  "  What  is  the  Third 


MARC-ETIENNE   POPULUS,    DEPUTY    FOR   BOURG-EN-BRESSE. 
From  an  engraving  in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale. 


I23 


Th£roigne's  Club  125 

Estate  ?     Nothing.     What  ought  it  to   be  ?     Every- 
thing.'' 

Morellet,  having  deserted  the  salon  of  Mme  Helve- 
tius,  commenced  rival  gatherings  of  his  own  on  Sundays, 
at  which  the  Suards  were  present.  At  the  houses  of 
Mme  Lameth  and  Mme  Dumas  there  were  a  great 
number  of  Montagnards,  at  Mme  Roland's  many  of 
the  Girondins.  At  Mme  d'  Angivillers  c<  all  the 
Revolution "  was  made  welcome,  and,  as  might  be 
expected,  the  number  of  her  guests  was  not  exceeded 
in  any  other  drawing-room.  She  was  a  very  fascinating 
hostess.  Gouverneur  Morris  went  there  as  well  as  to 
the  Condorcets',  whose  house  he  described  as  the  centre 
of  thinking  Europe,  where  distinguished  persons  from 
far  and  near  were  to  be  found,  perhaps  the  most  attractive 
feature  being  the  philosopher's  lively  and  sympathetic 
wife.  This  salon  was  presently  known  as  the  Foyer  de 
la  Republique,  and  all  with  monarchical  tendencies 
avoided  it  thereafter. 

After  these  important  and  representative  salons — and 
there  were  many  others — the  unpretentious  gatherings 
held  by  Theroigne  in  her  apartments  at  the  Hotel  de 
Grenoble,  Rue  de  Bouloi,  may  at  first  seem  insignificant. 
Nothing  like  as  powerful,  they  nevertheless  had  a  great 
deal  in  common  with  the  political  assemblies  organised 
by  Mme  Roland.  Their  aims  were  the  same. 
Theroigne  would  have  scorned  the  word  "  salon."  She 
preferred  to  use  the  word  "club."  Her  receptions  had 
little  that  was  social  in  their  aspect,  everything  that 
was  political,  and  it  was  necessary  for  her  to  minimise 
their  importance  as  much  as  possible  when  questioned 
on  the  subject  by  the  examining  magistrate  at  Kufstein. 
8 


126  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

She  succeeded  in  making  it  appear  that  the  organisation 
of  the  club  at  her  Hotel  was  one  of  the  most  harmless 
in  existence.  She  was  afraid  of  being  implicated  in 
plots  and  conspiracies,  and  denied  having  been  con- 
nected with  any  revolutionary  receptions.  Yet  nowhere 
was  the  purpose  more  definite,  the  labour  for  liberty 
more  earnest  and  from  the  heart.  She  tells  something 
of  the  origin  of  these  meetings  in  her  "  Confessions." 
"  When  the  National  Assembly  was  installed  in  Paris," 
she  writes,  "  I  followed  it.  I  lodged  at  the  Hotel  de 
Grenoble  in  the  Rue  de  Bouloi.  I  continued  to  be 
present  at  the  sittings  morning  and  evening.  Every- 
one knew  me  from  seeing  me  so  often.  The  people 
and  the  deputies  liked  me  as  much  on  account  of  my 
patriotism  as  for  my  private  conduct.  ...  I  proposed 
to  those  who  came  most  often  to  the  Tribune  of  the 
Feuillants  to  join  in  making  a  political  society.  They 
approved  of  my  idea.  Whilst  this  growing  club 
assembled  in  my  house  it  numbered  some  twelve  or 
thirteen  members." 

The  society  was  called  the  Club  of  the  Amis  de  la 
Loi,  but  must  not  be  confused  with  one  of  the  same 
name  founded  in  1791  by  Osselin.  The  chief  person 
associated  with  Th£roigne  in  founding  the  society  was 
Gilbert  Romme  the  mystic.  The  friendship  of  this 
high-minded  idealist — it  has  been  said  that  he  was  one 
of  the  purest  characters  of  the  Revolution — does  more 
to  reinstate  Th6roigne  amongst  the  virtuous  than  the 
constant  reflections  of  the  royalist  pamphlets  to  prove 
her  abandonment.  "  Romme,"  says  Michelet,  "  with 
the  face  of  Socrates,  had  his  profound  understanding, 
the  austere  mildness  of  a  sage,  of  a  hero,  of  a  martyr." 


Th£roigne's  Club  127 

Like  his  brother  Charles  Romme,  the  mathematician, 
Gilbert  consecrated  himself  to  the  sciences.  He  was 
born  at  Riom  in  1750  and  had  many  followers  among 
his  countrymen  in  mountainous  Auvergne.  He  sat 
in  the  National  Convention,  was  a  Montagnard,  helped 
to  produce  the  republican  calendar  and  in  1793  stabbed 
himself  to  cheat  the  guillotine.  At  the  time  of  his 
association  with  Theroigne  he  had  under  his  charge  a 
son  of  a  Russian  noble,  Count  Strogonoff,  familiarly 
called  Otcher.  This  descendant  of  despots  was 
educated  by  him,  in  the  latest  ideas  on  liberty,  and 
accompanied  him  to  the  sittings  of  the  National 
Assembly  and  the  clubs. 

Romme  was  the  president  of  Theroigne's  society, 
and  amongst  the  members  were  several  of  his  country- 
men, Beaulieu,  Larminat,  Sponville,  and  Romme's 
nephew  Tailhard.  Otcher  was  made  librarian.  The 
meetings  took  place  three  times  a  week — on  Tuesdays, 
Fridays,  and  Sundays  from  seven  till  ten  in  the  evening. 
A  month  later  only  two  meetings  were  held,  on 
Tuesdays  and  Thursdays. 

Theroigne  did  everything  she  could  to  make  the 
club  a  success  and  worked  hard  to  recruit  new  mem- 
bers. She  proposed  that  her  brother  should  join  it, 
but  the  idea  was  negatived  on  the  ostensible  grounds 
that  he  knew  very  little  French  ;  actually,  it  was  said, 
because  he  had  lived  at  his  sister's  expense  on  money 
none  too  honestly  come  by. 

When  the  club  started  Theroigne  was  put  in  charge 
of  the  papers  and  documents,  but  she  soon  handed 
over  this  responsibility  to  Chapsal.  She  took  part  in 
all  the  discussions,  knew  as  much  as  the  other  members 


128  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

concerning  the  legislation  of  the  country,  and  cham- 
pioned more  hotly  than  any  of  them  the  rights  of 
her  sex.  She  thought  women  should  be  far  more  inde- 
pendent and  rely  less  on  the  protection  of  men  than 
they  had  been  accustomed  to  do. 

From  March  loth  onwards  M.  de  Larminat  pre- 
sided at  the  meetings,  Sponville  and  Daguet  were 
secretaries.  Maret,  the  future  Due  de  Bassano  and  de 
Bosc  d' Antic,  son  of  Louis  XV.'s  doctor  and  friend  of 
Mme  Roland,  joined  the  society  about  this  time.  The 
members  sought  to  affiliate  popular  committees  with 
the  departments.  The  aims  of  the  club  were  written 
out  by  Romme l  under  the  title  of  "  Association 
Populaire." 

"The  project,"  said  Romme,  "  is  the  result  of 
several  conversations  in  which  Mile  Theroigne  pointed 
out  that  it  would  be  of  great  importance  at  this 
moment  to  have  an  establishment  which  made  it  an 
object  to  learn  the  degree  and  the  means  of  influence 
possessed  by  each  member  of  the  National  Assembly." 
This  idea  resulted  in  the  formation  and  development 
of  the  society.  Other  plans  were  added  and  the  whole 
grew  into  an  important  organisation,  its  purpose  being 
"  to  give  a  new  impulse  to  manners  ;  to  educate  the 
people  to  an  understanding  of  the  dignity  of  its  rights  ; 
to  enlighten  it  upon  its  real  interests  and  upon  the 
degree  of  confidence  and  esteem  that  it  owes  to  the 
zeal,  the  knowledge,  and  the  virtues  of  its  representa- 
tives in  the  National  Assembly  ;  to  display  before  it 
the  advantages  of  the  Revolution  ;  to  spread,  as  far 

1  MS.  by  Romme  in  the  possession  of  M.  Marcellin  Pellet.  "Theroigne 
de  Mericourt,"  p.  39. 


Thcroigne's  Club  129 

as  possible,  a  knowledge  of  the  daily  workings  of  the 
Assembly  ;  to  reawaken  the  patriotism  which  had  be- 
come extinct  in  the  souls  of  some  who  were  discouraged 
or  fearful ;  to  hold  back  some  of  the  too  excitable 
spirits  who  might  be  carried  away  by  their  excess 
of  zeal ;  to  spare  impatient  readers  the  laborious  and 
objectionable  research  among  the  multitude  of  pam- 
phlets and  periodical  publications  with  which  we  are 
inundated ;  to  offer  to  good  citizens  a  choice  of 
literature  already  prepared  for  their  use  in  a  reading- 
room  open  to  associates  ;  to  correspond  with  the 
provinces,  to  spread  information  concerning  good 
books  and  fine  deeds,  and  to  gather  from  these  sources 
fresh  inspirations,  new  motives  of  encouragement ;  to 
focus  the  scattered  rays  of  public  opinion  and  to  dis- 
sipate the  clouds,  with  which  black,  vile,  and  hypo- 
critical souls  intentionally  obscure  them  in  order  to 
alarm  others ;  and  to  direct  a  searching  light  upon  the 
tribunal  without  censuring  its  decisions,  in  order  that 
those  marked  by  wisdom  and  maturity  may  acquire  an 
impressive  and  redoubtable  character  in  the  eyes  of 
those  who  would  betray  the  public  cause,  but  may 
inspire  with  confidence  those  who  believe  in  the 
people's  good." 

A  society  with  such  aims  should  surely  have  been 
above  reproach,  even  though  its  archivist  was  "  a 
woman  who  was  fatally  dangerous  to  the  young  and 
inexperienced." 1  Romme  was  absolutely  convinced 
that  the  members  of  the  Amis  de  la  Loi  were  as 
blameless  in  their  morals  as  they  were  upright  in  their 
opinions.  Theroigne  appears  in  an  altogether  new, 
1  "Romme  le  Montagnard,"  Marc  de  Vissac. 


i3°  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

but  perhaps  none  the  less  fascinating  light.  It  is  easy 
to  picture  her  in  a  quakerish  gown  of  grey,  her  flam- 
boyant riding-habits  laid  temporarily  aside,  her  smile 
subdued  for  the  time,  the  merry  twinkle  of  her  eye 
veiled  by  her  lashes,  her  forehead  puckered  by  a  little 
frown  in  token  of  her  earnestness,  and  her  brain  ever 
busy  with  fresh  plans  for  the  furtherance  of  the  club's 
purposes.  Her  ideas  were  carefully  sifted  by  Romme, 
and  carried  out  practically.  The  work  was  divided 
into  various  departments.  There  was  a  committee 
of  annotation,  whose  duty  it  was  to  attend  the  sittings 
of  the  National  Assembly  ;  a  bibliographical  committee, 
charged  with  the  examination  and  censorship  of  the 
publications  and  documents  for  the  perusal  of  the 
society  ;  an  information  bureau,  which  gathered  in 
the  news  and  rumours  of  the  town,  and  attended 
the  sittings  of  the  Commune  and  of  the  Chatelet ; 
and  an  editorial  department,  which  issued  weekly 
reports  of  the  work  done  by  the  various  committees. 
Neither  Romme  nor  Theroigne  spared  themselves  in 
perfecting  the  details  of  this  somewhat  complicated 
machinery.  The  arrangements  for  the  library  and 
reading-room  were  left  chiefly  to  the  young  Russian 
Count.  For  the  sake  of  the  number  of  his  own 
countrymen  who  were  members,  Romme  desired  that 
a  translation  should  be  made  of  "  The  Declaration  of 
the  Rights  of  Man  "  into  the  vernacular  of  Limagne 
d'  Auvergne. 

Theroigne  describes  a  little  ceremony  that  took  place 
at  one  of  her  meetings.  "  One  day,"  she  said,  "  I  had 
the  idea  that  it  would  be  a  good  thing  if  the  people 
gave  civic  crowns  or  cockades  to  the  best  patriots  of 


Th£roigne's  Club  131 

the  National  Assembly.  A  motion  to  this  effect, 
directed  by  M.  Romme  and  others,  and  signed  by  the 
people,  was  adopted.  Seven  cockades  were  given  to 
the  seven  members  of  the  Committee  of  the  Constitu- 
tion. All  the  world  wished  to  contribute  to  the  small 
expense  which  this  occasioned  me.  But  by  reason 
of  my  patriotic  zeal,  I  did  not  accept.  I  took  the 
cockades  to  M.  FAbbe  Si6yes,  whom  I  considered 
the  most  worthy  of  public  gratitude  and  esteem. 
Monsieur  1'Abbe  came  to  my  house  in  person  to 
thank  me." 

This  account  of  a  club,  with  all  its  dry-as-dust 
details  of  organisation,  not  differing  much  from  many 
similar  institutions,  may  be  contrasted  with  an  imaginary 
one — for  the  French  have  the  power  of  caricature 
developed  to  a  marvellous  degree,  and  when  they  told 
the  story  of  a  revolutionary  political  gathering  they 
knew  how  to  make  it  humorous,  even  to  the  point 
of  fantasy.  Such  a  description  was  published  in  the 
Actes  des  Apotres  at  the  beginning  of  1790,  and  is 
worth  repeating,  if  only  because  Theroigne  played  an 
important  part  in  it,  and  figured  in  the  accompany- 
ing illustration.  The  skit  was  entitled  the  "  Club  de 
la  Revolution,"  and  tells  a  long-winded  story  of  the 
Marquis  de  Condorcet,  who  conceived  the  clever  plan 
of  converting  the  Pantheon  opposite  the  Palais  Royal 
into  a  Temple  of  Liberty,  and  calling  it  the  Club  de  la 
Revolution,  or  Portico  of  France.  The  opening  of 
the  establishment  took  place  amidst  solemn  celebra- 
tions. Some  five  hundred  members,  chosen  from 
amongst  the  most  zealous  defenders  of  the  people,  lent 
it  brilliancy.  The  Abbe  de  Sieves  was  chosen  president. 


1 32  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

A  like  number  of  ladies,  being  the  most  ardent  up- 
holders of  the  Rights  of  Man,  were  adjudged  worthy 
of  the  privilege  of  being  incorporated  in  the  society,  and 
Mile  Theroigne  de  Mericourt  was  elected  president e 
by  her  concitoyennes.  She  was  installed  on  the  spot, 
and  presented  with  the  instrument  proper  and  necessary 
to  the  rights  and  duties  of  her  post.  The  functions 
required  of  her  were  more  onerous  than  those  expected 
of  the  president.  The  little  bell  usual  in  such  cases 
was  enlarged  upon  this  occasion,  and  was  provided  with 
a  handle  and  clapper  of  remarkable  size.  The  hall  was 
especially  decorated,  and  there  was  dancing,  four 
quadrilles  serving  to  open  the  ball. 

Everybody  who  was  anybody  among  the  revolutionists 
was  present.  The  Due  d'Aiguillon,  dressed  as  the  Queen 
of  Hungary,  danced  the  minuet  with  the  Chevalier  Malo 
de  Lameth  attired  as  the  King  of  Prussia.  In  spite  of 
their  good  disguises  these  two  were  recognised.  This 
dance  was  followed  by  a  contredanse,  in  which  M.  de 
Clermont  Tonnerre  took  part,  wearing  an  iron  mask. 
M.  de  Champcenetz  fils  danced  with  a  lady  disguised 
as  Venus.  M.  Guillotin,  the  political  doctor,  danced 
not  to  his  own  instrument  of  torture,  but  a  solemn 
minuet  with  Mile  Samson.  Robespierre,  disguised  as 
a  cherub,  thought  it  would  be  better  to  substitute  a 
tight-rope  dance,  but  to  this  the  grave  doctor  objected. 

A  pas  de  quatre  followed,  performed  by  Mirabeau 
attired  like  a  royal  tiger,  with  a  mask  of  Paris 
mud,  Brissot  dressed  like  the  wandering  Jew,  Mme 
Olympe  de  Gouges  disguised  as  a  young  Indienne^  and 
Mme  de  Condorcet  masquerading  as  the  Infanta  of 
Zamora.  The  fandanga,  the  caloula,  and  the  bamboula 


Therotgne's  Club  133 

were  danced,  Talleyrand  being  among  the  many  who 
took  part  in  these  fantastic  steps.  Next  came  a  per- 
formance by  Target,  who  walked  the  tight-rope,  and 
to  him  Sieyes  presented  a  colossal  pyramid,  which  being 
reversed  he  was  ordered  to  balance  to  the  best  of  his 
ability  on  its  point.  This  ingenious  symbol  repre- 
sented the  Constitution.  Thouret,  in  the  garb  of  a 
harlequin,  then  sang  a  song  entitled,  "  Ah  !  comme 
il  y  viendra,"  and  Target,  in  the  endeavour  to  respond 
with  "  J  'ai  plus  que  vous  le  poignet  ferme,"  took  a 
false  step  and  came  toppling  down,  pyramid  and  all. 

After  some  more  turns  of  a  similar  character,  Mira- 
beau,  disguised  in  red,  white,  and  blue,  danced  a 
figure  representing  the  Constitution  of  England, 
which  had  remained  unaltered  for  a  complete  century. 
Barnave  was  also  present,  and,  masked  in  the  head  of 
a  shark,  and  with  his  coat  laced  with  principles,  was 
intended  to  represent  the  Rights  of  Man. 

Much  more  of  the  same  kind  of  satire  followed, 
including  a  detailed  description  of  the  illustration  to 
the  scene,  which  was  called  the  "  Opening  Ceremony  of 
the  Club  de  la  Revolution." 

Mile  Theroigne  de  Mericourt  is  here  to  be  seen 
directing  the  orchestra  and  handling  two  bells  which 
weighed  no  less  than  forty-four  pounds  each. 
Harmonious  as  were  the  musical  instruments,  the 
noise  from  the  boxes  on  the  left,  rising  above  them, 
often  made  it  impossible  to  hear  oneself  speak.  The 
costume  of  Mile  Theroigne  is  the  same  she  wore  at 
Versailles  when,  at  the  head  of  the  national  army,  she 
routed  a  brigade  of  the  bodyguard.  Her  scarlet 
riding-habit,  her  black  plumes,  her  chestnut  locks,  were 


134  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  rallying-sign.  She  was  always  to  be  found  on  the 
road  taken  by  the  routed.  Media?  inter  ccedes  exultat 
Amazon.  In  a  manner  similar  to  the  lictors  of  the 
Roman  Consuls,  the  august  coupe-tete  carried  national 
forces  in  front  of  our  heroine,  who  commanded  a 
detachment  of  five  hundred  warriors  as  dependable  as 
herself. 

The  picture  also  shows  Target  doing  his  tight-rope 
act,  Sieyes  climbing  up  the  folding  ladder  to  give  him 
the  inverted  pyramid.  Not  far  from  Theroigne  is 
Barnave  wearing  the  shark  mask,  and  in  the  back- 
ground Mme  de  Stael  is  arm-in-arm  with  M.  de 
Champcenetz. 

But  to  return  to  Theroigne's  club.  Naturally 
enough  both  her  friends  and  enemies  were  quick  to 
express  in  complimentary  or  derogatory  terms  their 
opinion  of  her  attempt  at  establishing  one  of  her  own 
on  purely  political  lines.  Champcenetz  was  perhaps 
the  most  satirical  among  her  opponents.  His  account, 
or  supposed  account,  appeared  in  a  letter  purporting 
to  be  from  him,  and  printed  in  the  Actes  des  Apotres. 
It  forms  a  remarkable  contrast  to  her  own  simple 
story  of  the  meetings  at  her  house. 

u  Chance,"  he  wrote,  "  gave  me  the  acquaintance  of 
Mile  Theroigne  de  Mericourt.  The  charm  of  her 
face,  the  graces  of  her  wit,  and,  far  more  than  that,  her 
ardent  love  of  liberty,  attracted  me  to  this  adorable 
woman.  She  might  be  called  the  muse  of  democracy, 
or,  still  better,  Venus  giving  lessons  on  public  rights. 
Her  society  is  a  lyceum,  her  principles  those  of  the 
portico.  She  might  have  those  of  the  arcade  if  she 
desired.  Among  her  pupils  may  be  counted  Abb£ 


Thcroigne's  Club  135 

Sieyes,  Petion  de  Villeneuve,  Barnave,  and  the  happy 
Populus,  whose  prodigious  arts  of  pleasing  and 
inexhaustible  love  she  will  soon  crown,  alas!  by  a 
marriage  which  will  be  the  misfortune  of  my  life. 
The  pieces  most  applauded,  most  eloquent,  most  civic 
of  their  discourse  at  the  Assembly  have  been  composed 
or  inspired  by  her.  The  Hotel  de  Grenoble,  Rue  de 
Bouloi,  where  she  lodges,  has  become  the  central 
point  of  the  great  interests  of  regenerated  France. 
There  the  discovery  was  made  of  that  administrative 
power,  unknown  to  the  ancients,  so  simple  in  its 
organisation,  so  imposing  in  its  details,  and  so 
ingenious  in  its  progress  that  it  will  immediately  re- 
place the  three  other  powers,  however  little  the 
mechanism  of  political  societies  is  perfected.  There 
the  foundations  of  this  royal  democracy,  which  has 
all  the  advantages  of  republics,  without  having  the 
inconveniences  of  monarchies,  are  laid  ;  there  is 
built,  with  the  hands  of  philanthropy,  the  edifice  of  the 
liberty  of  the  blacks,  already  so  advanced  in  Martinique ; 
.  .  .  there  the  project  ripens  of  making  d'Avignon  the 
eighty-fifth  department  of  France ;  there  the  enter- 
prises of  aristocrats  are  disconcerted  ;  there,  in  short, 
are  prepared  those  luminous  motions  which  are  at 
the  same  time  the  admiration  of  the  capital  and  the 
stupefaction  of  the  provinces. " 

Le  Rodeur,  which  endeavoured  to  protect  the 
much-maligned  Theroigne  from  her  arch  enemies, 
"The  Apostles,"  had  also  a  word  to  say  on  her 
startling  enterprise.  In  its  columns  she  was  de- 
scribed as  an  amiable  young  lady  of  two-and-twenty, 
who  hastened  to  return  from  Rome  to  the  banks  of 


136  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  Seine  in  order  to  protect  the  dawning  liberty  of 
the  French.  She  took  up  the  people's  cause,  and  her 
enthusiasm  for  the  rights  of  man  soon  made  itself  felt. 
Revolutionary  committees,  it  was  declared,  were  held 
at  her  house,  where  a  thousand  nails  were  driven  into 
the  machinery  of  the  Constitution,  and  a  policy  was 
followed  which  so  enraged  the  forty-five  apostles  that 
in  their  utter  aristocratic  impotence  they  permitted 
themselves  every  outrage,  every  poignant  atrocity, 
that  jealous  fury  could  devise. 

Among  this  more  or  less  excellent  fooling,  the 
general  opinion  appeared  to  be,  especially  in  royalist 
circles,  that  she  might  have  turned  her  unquestionable 
charms  to  better  account.  All  sorts  of  lies  were  told 
concerning  the  number  and  identity  of  her  associates. 
The  deposition  of  the  Comte  de  la  Valette,  entitled 
"  Dires  et  Aveux,"  represented  her  as  being  in  close 
relation  with  the  heads  of  the  democracy,  whom  she 
received  frequently  at  her  house.  "  Besides  the  Due 
d'Orleans,"  he  declares,  "  who  was  her  great  and 
principal  friend,  one  might  meet  at  her  salon  the  Dues 
de  Liancourt  and  de  Broglie,  the  Comte  de  Mirabeau, 
Abbe  Si6yes,  and  many  others,  all  of  them  deputies 
and  partisans  of  the  people." 

Baron  Mengin  Salabert  on  the  same  subject  said 
that  when  the  States  General  was  assembled  she  invited 
to  her  house  the  most  rabid  democrats,  among  them 
Barnave,  Robespierre,  Chapelier,  and  Mirabeau.  "  This 
new  Lais  turned  their  heads,"  he  continues,  "  and  they 
soon  made  of  her  a  veritable  Aspasia  to  whose  house 
they  came  to  take  lessons  in  politics,  eloquence,  and 
legislation.  The  continual  association  with  courtesans 


ThSroigne's  Club  137 

usually  enervates  both  soul  and  body,  and  often  is 
conducive  to  the  loss  of  fortune,  health,  repose,  and 
honour.  The  four  philosophers  mentioned  did  not 
fear  such  effects,  least  of  all  from  the  financial  point 
of  view.  They  were  soon  reinforced  by  twenty 
other  deputies,  among  whom  were  the  Abbe  Sieves 
and  the  Abbe  Gouttes,  in  spite  of  his  white  hairs. 

"  They  took  an  hotel,  at  which  they  lodged  this 
marvellous  young  woman.  There  they  conspired. 
It  was  at  her  house  that  they  formed  the  project  of 
corrupting  the  French  guards.  Dressed  as  a  man, 
she  went  alone,  from  one  end  of  Paris  to  the  other, 
through  all  the  barracks.  She  harangued  the  soldiers 
hour  after  hour,  and  in  the  end  distributed  money 
amongst  them.  Thirty  thousand  livres  were  given 
by  her  in  a  fortnight !  The  memorable  manifestation 
of  the  5th  and  6th  of  October  was  prepared  by  her. 
The  Due  d'Orleans  frequented  her  salon.  He  used 
to  go  there  at  night,  as  well  as  several  of  those 
attached  to  his  house.  They  gave  themselves  up  to 
their  usual  orgies." 

All  this  is  the  creation  of  a  vivid  imagination. 
Theroigne  denied  that  she  had  ever  spoken  to  the 
Due  d'Orleans.  She  said,  moreover,  that,  though 
she  knew  Robespierre,  Chapelier,  and  the  Abb6  Gouttes 
by  sight,  she  had  never  spoken  to  them  and  never 
invited  them  to  her  house.  If  she  had  been  intimate 
with  them,  she  would  have  thought  it  a  great  honour. 
When  asked  whether  she  had  given  supper-parties  at 
Versailles,  she  denied  that  too. 

"  When  Paris  was  filled  with  clubs,"  says  Beaulieu, 
a  more  reliable  authority,  "  she  was  to  be  seen  at  one 


138  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

or  two  every  evening,  after  having  harangued  crowds 
in  every  quarter  of  the  town  all  day  long,  giving  out 
at  the  clubs  her  motions  and  instructions,  and  hurrying 
back  to  her  house  to  do  the  honours  for  her  visitors. 
It  would  be  difficult  to  find  another  example  of  such 
activity."  He  accused  her  of  having  utterly  ruined 
certain  persons  of  considerable  repute.  "  Rather 
neglected  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution,"  he 
continues,  in  his  <c  Essais  Historiques,"  "weary  of 
pleasures  which  had  been  too  well  paid,  the  little 
M£ricourt  thought  of  taking  up  a  political  career. 
She  dressed  herself  in  a  riding-habit,  crowned  her 
pretty  head  with  a  little  hat  a  la  Henri  Quatre,  and 
in  this  attire  mixed  with  the  crowd  of  speakers  who 
never  ceased  to  discuss  affairs  of  State  in  the  tribunes 
and  gangways  of  the  National  Assembly." 

Her  singular  appearance  soon  attracted  much  atten- 
tion. At  first  it  was  thought  she  was  there  to  win 
the  admiration  which  means  much  to  one  of  her  sex 
and  age.  But  this  was  quite  a  mistake.  "  The  most 
innocent  gallantry  made  her  frown,  and  the  voluptuous 
Cypris  was  suddenly  metamorphosed  into  a  grave  and 
severe  Minerva.  This  clever  pretence  imposed  on 
everybody,  pricked  their  dignity,  provoked  the  affec- 
tions of  those  who  thought  she  was  pretty,  and  little 
was  wanting  to  turn  all  the  politicians  into  passionate 
lovers. 

"  Several  of  the  deputies  paid  court  to  the  courtesan, 
among  others  the  famous  Petion,  with  whom  she 
often  had  conferences.  They  also  pretended  that 
Populus,  the  deputy,  was  one  of  her  lovers.  But  the 
truth  was  that  she  did  not  know  him.  The  authors 


Th£roigne's  Club  139 

of  the  dctes  des  Afotres  made  a  pun  on  the  word 
Populus,  meaning  people,  and  her  marriage  to  Populus 
meant  the  marriage  with  the  people." 

No  one  gave  more  praise  to  the  philosophic  senti- 
ments uttered  by  the  fair  Theroigne,  in  Beaulieu's 
opinion,  than  the  Abb£  Sieves.  He  was  her  particular 
god.  She  openly  paid  homage  and  adoration  to  his 
talents  and  virtues.  Mirabeau's  immorality  she  sternly 
deplored.  She  was  told  to  make  allowances  for  him 
on  account  of  his  weakness  for  the  fair  sex,  but  this 
she  refused  to  do,  and  went  so  far  as  to  show  her 
disapproval  in  strong  terms. 

The  authors  of  the  "  Histoire  de  la  Revolution  par 
deux  amis  de  la  Liberte  "  said  much  the  same.  It  is 
suggested  that  Beaulieu  collaborated  with  Kerverseau 
and  Clavelin  in  this  work,  and  he  may  have  written 
or  revised  their  account  of  Theroigne.  "We  have 
seen  wise  men  fall  in  love  with  this  small  person,  who 
rejected  their  advances  with  a  Lacedemonian  pride," 
they  say.  "  When  they  learnt  that  this  scrupulous 
beauty  was  nothing  more  nor  less  than  a  file  entretenue, 
abandoned  by  a  lover  she  had  ruined,  they  laughed 
heartily." 

The  most  intimate  connections  of  this  "  Luxemburg 
prude/'  as  they  call  her,  were  with  the  brother  of 
Abbe  Si6yes  and  Romme,  one  of  the  most  zealous 
followers  of  the  Abbe.  Romme,  who  had  since 
become  deputy  in  the  national  convention,  was  at 
that  time  tutor  to  a  young  Russian  noble,  Count 
Strogonoff,  who  was  amused  by  the  intimacy  between 
the  two.  Theroigne  was  pretty,  Romme  was  a  sort 
of  Quaker,  affecting  the  most  austere  modesty  ;  he 


140  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

took  no  care  of  his  person,  and  was  not  good  to  look 
upon.  He  was  an  obscure  metaphysician,  a  political 
alchemist  whose  ridiculous  dissertations  it  was  quite 
impossible  to  follow.  Nothing  was  more  comic,  they 
said,  than  to  hear  the  little  Theroigne  trying  to 
appreciate  her  master's  mysticism,  and  to  see  these 
two,  so  different  in  appearance  and  manner,  laughing 
together  at  their  audacious  discoveries. 

The  Deux  Amis  put  her  age  at  twenty-three  or  four 
at  the  time  they  knew  her.  They  admitted  her  pretti- 
ness,  but  said  that  she  pushed  her  reserve  to  extremes, 
that  the  most  innocent  pleasantries  made  her  blush  and 
the  least  coaxing  annoyed  her.  Nevertheless  men 
were  usually  her  companions.  She  joined  in  all  the 
groups,  was  to  be  found  in  all  the  clubs  and  at  all  the 
revolutionary  fetes.  After  spending  the  morning  in 
the  public  tribunes  of  the  National  Assembly  she 
spoke  in  the  evening  at  the  Cordeliers  and  at  the 
Jacobins. 

Lamartine  and  Goncourt  have  taken  their  accounts 
of  Theroigne' s  salon  from  the  less  accurate  sources,  of 
which  there  are  many.  Both  make  Mirabeau  her 
guest  as  well  as  Camille  Desmoulins.  Goncourt  adds 
the  names  of  Brissot,  Chenier,  Clootz,  Fabre  d'Eglan- 
tine,  Momoro,  Saint-Just,  and  Robespierre.  Lamartine 
mentions  Danton  and  Ronsin  also.  "  Romme,  the 
mystical  republican,"  he  says,  "  infused  into  her  mind 
the  German  spirit  of  illuminatism.  Youth,  love, 
revenge,  and  the  contact  with  this  furnace  of  a  revolu- 
tion, had  turned  her  head,  and  she  lived  in  the  intoxi- 
cation of  passions,  ideas,  and  pleasures.  Connected  at 
first  with  the  great  innovations  of  '89,  she  had  passed 


Th£roigne's  Club  H3 

from  their  arms  into  those  of  rich  voluptuaries,  who 
purchased  her  charms  dearly.  Courtesan  of  opulence, 
she  became  the  voluntary  prostitute  of  the  people  ; 
and  like  her  celebrated  prototypes  of  Egypt  and  of 
Rome,  she  lavished  upon  liberty  the  wealth  she 
derived  from  vice."  Duval  is  quite  as  extreme  :  "  All 
who  had  vowed  hatred  against  royalty,  all  who  thirsted 
after  royal  blood,  were  admitted  with  enthusiasm  to 
her  lodging,  and  feted  and  caressed  there.  She  was 
the  Duchesse  de  Montpensier  of  the  gutters,  as  well  as 
the  wicked  and  vindictive  sister  of  the  Guises." 

A  remarkable  picture  of  a  vampire  which,  as  far 
as  Theroigne  was  concerned,  was  scarcely  true  to 
nature  ! 

In  spite  of  all  that  was  written  by  those  who  pre- 
ferred to  depict  her  as  a  bloodthirsty  individual  march- 
ing through  the  dramatic  scenes  of  the  Revolution 
with  the  intention  of  slaying  and  destroying,  it  is 
evident  that  at  this  time  at  least  she  was  far  more  the 
dame  politique  than  the  warrior.  She  had  put  her 
whole  heart  into  the  success  of  the  society  which  had 
its  head-quarters  at  her  house,  and  when  it  became 
obvious  that  the  venture  was  not  going  to  succeed  she 
was  sincerely  grieved.  She  found  it  impossible  to 
recruit  new  members,  and  suggested  every  means  of 
sustaining  the  dying  interest  in  the  club,  which  had 
only  had  a  lease  of  three  months  of  life.  "  When  the 
association  which  had  first  held  its  meetings  in  my 
rooms  was  dissolved,"  she  says,  "  I  proposed  to  form 
a  new  one.  I  was  guided  in  all  my  propositions  only 
by  the  love  of  good  and  the  glory  to  be  acquired 
by  rendering  myself  useful  to  the  nation.  But  I  had 
9 


144  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

not  enough  talent  for  this,  nor  enough  experience,  and, 
alas  !  I  was  only  a  woman." 

The  idea  of  forming  a  new  club  having  been 
abandoned,  a  proposal  was  started  that  the  original 
members  should  join  the  Club  des  Cordeliers,  but  some 
of  them  objected  to  this  scheme.  Theroigne  herself 
would  have  rejoiced  in  being  permitted  to  work  on  an 
equal  footing  with  the  men  who  were  giving  time, 
money,  and  life  itself  for  the  good  of  their  country. 
But  here  too  she  was  debarred  by  sex.  The  ambitions 
and  patriotism  of  a  woman  were  not  to  be  taken 
seriously  at  that  date.  She  had  done  her  best  to  draw 
Si£yes  into  her  little  circle,  feeling  convinced  that  with 
his  authority  behind  her  she  would  be  able  to  secure 
a  certain  amount  of  attention  wherever  she  wished  to 
make  herself  heard.  In  this  respect  her  project  failed 
and  she  had  to  remain  contented  with  receiving  the 
great  constitution-builder  by  proxy  in  the  person  of 
his  brother.  Nevertheless  she  obtained  a  consider- 
able, though  by  no  means  unlimited,  influence. 
According  to  Beaulieu  her  assistance  was  regarded  as 
invaluable  in  cases  where  stragglers  were  to  be  won 
over,  or  the  discouraged  to  be  strengthened,  so  re- 
markable were  her  powers  of  persuasion.  She  was 
always  present  in  the  tribunes  or  neighbourhood  of 
the  Assembly,  sometimes  dressed  in  a  Greek  costume, 
at  the  head  of  the  shouting  rabble,  and  to  her  was 
relegated  the  duty  of  leading  the  applause  or  hooting. 
She  had  an  extraordinary  vivacity,  an  alert  imagination, 
and  but  little  wit,  declared  the  same  writer,  whatever 
may  have  been  said  by  those  who  in  1789  regarded  her 
as  a  prodigy.  Her  head  was  full  of  verses  by  those 


Th£roigne's  Club  145 

great  poets  who  had  the  most  exalted  Republican  ideas. 
She  repeated  them  with  wonderful  fire,  in  a  jargon 
which  was  half  French,  half  Flemish,  which  amused  her 
hearers  and  sounded  delightful  on  lips  that  were  to  all 
appearance  sweet  and  innocent. 

Theroigne  had  undoubtedly  the  gift  of  oratory. 
Some  of  her  worst  detractors  admitted  so  much.  The 
Petit  Gauthier,  royalist  among  the  royalists,  and  full  of 
coarse  and  satiric  jesting,  described  "the  Brabantian 
nymph  "  as  carrying  away  her  audience  by  sheer  fervour 
when  speaking  at  a  bookseller's  in  the  Palais  Royal,  in 
spite  of  the  fact  that  what  she  said  was  so  unreasonable 
that  the  aristocrats  a  shrugged  their  shoulders  for  very 
pity,"  and  forced  her  to  cut  short  her  remarks  before 
she  had  done  her  speech. 

Baudet,  who  often  saw  her  at  gatherings  near  the 
Tuileries,  declared  that  she  spoke  more  with  confidence 
than  with  the  word  of  the  orator.  Her  costume  was 
neither  elegant  nor  bizarre.  It  consisted  of  a  common 
green  riding-habit  and  a  hat  with  a  black  feather.  She 
was  small  and  well-shaped,  with  good  features  and  a 
complexion  the  colour  of  a  russet  pear,  owing  to  the 
out-of-door  life  she  led. 

Evidence  of  her  oratorical  abilities  was  given  by 
Hyde  de  Neuville,  a  royalist  whose  grandfather  had 
fled  from  England  with  Charles  Stuart  in  1745.  Hyde 
de  Neuville  had  followed  the  royal  cause  staunchly 
from  the  opening  of  the  Revolution,  and  wherever  he 
could  gather  a  crowd  he  harangued  it  upon  its  duty. 
He  declared  that  Marie- Antoinette  had  become  to  him 
an  object  of  romantic  devotion  and  that  he  could  see 
no  higher  aim  in  life  than  to  work  for  her  in  this 


146  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

manner.  However  much  he  ran  the  danger  of  being 
menaced  and  pursued,  he  never  allowed  his  zeal  to 
lessen. 

"  One  day/'  he  writes  in  his  Memoirs,  a  I  was  so 
little  circumspect  as  to  apostrophise  Theroigne  de 
Mericourt,  already  known  by  her  audacious  immorality 
and  revolutionary  declarations.  She  was  haranguing 
the  people  from  the  Feuillants  Terrace,  and  did  not 
refrain  from  trying  to  persuade  them  by  the  use  of 
pompous  phrases,  born  of  the  Revolution,  which 
were  the  shameful  products  of  fanaticism,  ignorance, 
and  the  perversity  of  our  political  charlatans.  We 
began  by  discussion  and  we  ended  in  dispute. 

"  This  orator  in  petticoats  gave  vent  to  a  thousand 
coarse  insults  and  endeavoured  to  excite  the  crowd 
against  me,  but  for  once  the  populace  was  inclined  to 
be  generous.  People  listened  to  me  without  murmur- 
ing. A  man  entered  the  group  and  shouted  in  an 
imperious  tone  that  I  was  an  aristocrat  and  must  be 
left  in  peace.  He  was  disappointed  that  I  did  not  get 
angry,  for  he  liked  to  hear  plain  speaking.  Then  he 
came  close  to  me  and  said  in  a  low  tone,  '  Now  you 
have  done  enough,  little  aristocrat ;  get  out  of  this/ 
and  I  followed  his  advice,  which  was  good." 

Hyde  de  Neuville  described  Theroigne  as  an  un- 
fortunate courtesan,  who  although  still  young  in  years 
had  aged  before  her  time.  He  remarked  on  the 
facility  with  which  she  expressed  herself,  and  described 
her  carriage  as  upright,  her  figure  as  fine,  and  her  per- 
sonality as  stamped  with  shamelessness  and  effrontery. 
Conflicting  accounts  lead  to  the  belief  that  Theroigne, 
who  was  usually  shy,  retiring,  and  modest,  lost  all 


Th£roigne's  Club  H7 

appearance  of  bashfulness  when  roused  by  the  excite- 
ment of  her  cause  and  made  a  bold  impression  upon 
her  hearers.  Her  first  serious  attempt  at  a  speech 
which  has  been  recorded  was  made  at  the  Club  des 
Cordeliers,  the  fiery  off-shoot  of  the  Jacobins  Club. 
It  was  reported  by  Camille  Desmoulins  in  the  Revolu- 
tions de  France  et  de  ^Brabant,  and,  it  must  be  con- 
fessed, is  coloured  by  the  eloquent  personality  of  its 
transcriber.  Theroigne  was  imbued  with  the  idea  that 
it  was  time  the  National  Assembly  should  be  housed  in 
a  palace  worthy  of  its  great  aims.  She  came  to  air 
these  views  before  the  tribunal  of  the  club. 

An  usher  announced  to  the  president  of  the  gather- 
ing that  a  young  woman  desired  to  enter.  Every  one 
thought  that  she  must  be  a  petitioner.  No  one 
expected  that  a  preliminary  question  was  going  to  be 
put,  so  that  the  surprise  was  enormous  when  the 
celebrated  Mile  Theroigne  came  forward  and  asked 
leave  to  speak  and  propose  a  resolution.  It  was 
unanimously  agreed  to  admit  her  to  the  bar.  One 
honourable  member  was  overcome  by  his  enthusiasm 
on  seeing  her.  He  cried,  a  Here  is  the  Queen  of  Sheba 
who  has  come  to  see  the  Solomon  of  the  districts." 

"Yes,"  replied  Theroigne  to  this  challenge,  with 
much  presence  of  mind,  "  it  is  the  reputation  of  your 
wisdom  which  brings  me  into  your  midst.  Prove  that 
you  are  Solomon,  and  that  you  have  been  chosen  to 
build  a  temple,  and  then  hasten  to  erect  a  temple  to  the 
National  Assembly.  That  is  the  object  of  my  motion. 
Can  good  patriots  much  longer  endure  to  see  the 
executive  power  lodged  in  the  finest  palace  in  the  world, 
whilst  the  legislative  power  has  to  dwell  in  tents ; 


148  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

sometimes  in  the  Salle  des  Menus-plaisirs,  sometimes  at 
the  tennis-court,  sometimes  in  the  riding-school,  like 
the  ark's  dove  that  has  nowhere  to  rest  its  feet  ?  The 
last  stone  of  the  last  cell  of  the  Bastille  has  been 
brought  to  the  Senate,  and  M.  Camus  regards  it  every 
day  with  delight  where  it  lies  deposited  in  the  archives. 
The  ground  on  which  the  Bastille  stood  is  vacant  ; 
a  hundred  thousand  workmen  require  occupation. 
Why  do  we  delay,  illustrious  Cordeliers,  model  of  the 
districts,  patriots,  republicans,  Romans,  who  hear  me  ? 
Hasten  to  open  a  subscription  in  order  to  erect  a 
palace  for  the  National  Assembly  on  the  site  of  the 
Bastille.  All  France  will  hasten  to  second  you  in  this. 
She  only  awaits  the  signal  !  Give  it.  Invite  all  the 
best  workmen,  the  most  celebrated  artists  ;  send  for  the 
famous  architects  ;  cut  down  the  cedars  of  Lebanon, 
and  the  firs  of  Mount  Ida.  Ah,  if  stones  could  move 
of  their  own  free-will  it  is  not  for  the  building  of  the 
walls  of  Thebes  they  would  do  so,  but  to  construct  the 
temple  of  Liberty  !  We  must  give  our  gold  and  our 
jewels  to  enrich  and  embellish  this  edifice.  I  will  give 
mine  first  as  an  example.  You  have  been  told  that 
the  French  are  like  Jews,  people  who  have  become 
idolaters.  The  crowd  is  moved  through  its  senses. 
It  is  needful  to  give  it  outward  and  visible  images  upon 
which  it  may  bestow  its  worship.  Turn  its  glances 
from  the  Pavilion  de  Flore,  the  colonnades  of  the 
Louvre,  to  let  them  rest  on  a  basilica  more  beautiful 
than  Saint  Peter's  at  Rome  and  Saint  Paul's  in  London. 
The  veritable  temple  of  the  Eternal,  the  only  worthy 
one,  is  a  temple  in  which  the  declaration  of  the  Rights 
of  Man  has  been  spoken.  The  French  in  the  National 


Th£roigne's  Club  149 

Assembly  claim  the  rights  of  men  and  citizens.  There 
without  a  doubt  is  a  sight  upon  which  the  Supreme 
Being  can  turn  His  gaze  with  delight ;  there  is  the 
form  of  worship  He  will  accept  with  greater  pleasure 
than  tenor  and  bass  voices  raised  in  the  Kyrie  eleison 
or  a  Salvum  fac  regem" 

"  Imagine,"  added  Desmoulins,  u  the  effect  of  a 
discourse  so  animated  and  sparkling  with  symbols 
borrowed  indiscriminately  from  Pindar  and  the  Holy 
Scriptures." 

When  the  outburst  of  applause  which  greeted  her 
speech  had  calmed  down,  her  motion  was  discussed 
and  adopted.  The  club  charged  its  President  Par£, 
its  ex-President  Danton,  its  Vice-President  Fabre 
d'Eglantine,  as  well  as  Camille  Desmoulins  and 
Dufourny  de  Villiers,  to  draw  up  an  address  on  the 
subject  and  distribute  it  in  the  districts  and  departments. 
Enthusiasm  ran  riot. 

But  in  the  end  the  idea  came  to  nothing.  It  was 
not  altogether  new.  A  month  before  a  certain  Mme 
Desormeaux  had  brought  forward  a  similar  scheme. 
Perhaps  Th6roigne  borrowed  it  from  her.  Her  elo- 
quence certainly  drew  more  people's  attention  to  it. 
Th£roigne's  grammar  was  not  perfect  by  any  means, 
but  she  never  lacked  inspiration.  She  had  an  ulterior 
motive  in  making  this  appeal  to  the  people.  She 
hoped  to  be  admitted  to  the  district  with  a  consultative 
vote — that  is  to  say,  she  desired  to  be  accepted  as  a 
member  on  the  same  terms  as  a  man  might  have  been. 
But  this  was  denied  her.  The  Assembly  agreed  with 
its  president,  who  moved  a  vote  of  thanks  to  this 
charming  citoyenne  for  her  resolution.  He  declared 


150  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

that  since  the  Council  of  Ma$on  had  acknowledged 
the  fact  that  women  are  possessed  of  a  soul  and  intellect 
like  men,  no  one  could  prevent  them  from  making  so 
good  a  use  of  their  faculties  as  Theroigne  had  done, 
and  that  she  or  others  of  her  sex  would  be  listened 
to  with  pleasure  if  they  wished  to  propose  measures 
they  believed  to  be  advantageous  to  their  country. 
But — and  then  came  the  bitter  pill — it  was  impossible 
to  admit  her  to  the  club  as  a  member  with  a  right 
to  speak,  leaving  out  of  the  question  altogether  the 
power  to  vote. 

Although  this  repulse  was  a  great  disappointment 
to  her,  she  did  not  dwell  on  it,  and  in  her  own  account 
of  the  affair  only  referred  to  her  success. 

"  I  went  to  the  Club  des  Cordeliers,"  she  says  in  her 
u  Confessions,"  "  and  made  the  following  proposition  : 
'  It  is  necessary  to  open  a  subscription  list  to  build 
a  hall  which  may  be  worthy  of  the  representatives  of 
the  nation,  and  to  invite  the  most  celebrated  artists  in 
Europe  to  hold  a  consultation  regarding  plans  and 
a  style  of  decoration.  Women  must  renounce  their 
jewels  and  all  such  superfluities  as  are  incompatible 
with  the  austerity  of  manners  and  simplicity  of  habits 
which  ought  to  be  the  rule  in  a  time  regenerated  by 
liberty.  These  vain  ornaments  ought  to  be  sacrificed 
on  the  altar  of  our  country/  My  motion  was 
adopted." 

TheVoigne's  attitude  was  not  received  with  acclama- 
tions from  the  press.  The  Observateur  of  March  4th, 
1790,  whilst  it  described  her  as  a  young  heroine  who 
played  a  role  in  the  Revolution  as  brilliant  as  that 
of  Gildippe  and  Clorinda  at  the  siege  of  Jerusalem, 


Theroigne's  Club  151 

nevertheless  pooh-poohed  her  idea  of  building  a  palace 
for  the  National  Assembly,  on  the  grounds  of  the 
expense  at  a  time  when  the  kingdom  was  plunged  into 
profound  and  universal  misery.  "Had  she  any  idea," 
they  inquired,  "  as  to  the  immense  sums  which  would 
have  to  be  consecrated  to  such  an  enterprise?"  Before 
this  was  done,  it  would  be  better  that  the  effects  of  the 
monstrous  inequality  of  private  fortune  should  be  re- 
moved. "  Imagine,"  continues  the  Observateur,  address- 
ing their  victim,  "  if  you  have  the  courage  to  do  so,  four 
thousand  invalids  cooped  up  in  one  house,  placed  four 
by  four,  even  six  by  six,  in  beds  where  air  so  pestilential 
circulates  that  the  most  robust  health  does  not  come  in 
contact  with  it  without  peril.  .  .  .  There,  if  you  have 
eloquence  to  spare,  would  be  an  object  worthy  of  your 
talents.  Moreover,"  they  concluded,  "  it  would  be 
absurd  to  wish  to  add  to  the  edifices  of  a  town  which 
is  already  almost  deserted.  Would  it  not  be  better," 
they  advised  her,  "to  keep  within  the  bounds  of  a 
modest  silence  than  to  make  oneself  conspicuous  by 
making  such  ill-timed  propositions  ?  " 

The  Observateur  Feminin,  which  should  have  sup- 
ported the  doings  of  a  woman,  merely  stated  that 
Theroigne  had  astonished  the  Cordeliers,  had  made 
all  Paris  laugh,  and  had  laid  claims  to  great  notoriety. 

The  royalists  made  very  sarcastic  comments  on  the 
affair.  "  This  heroine  of  the  boudoir,"  they  said, 
"  proposes  resolutions  in  her  district.  She  considers 
the  King  is  too  well  lodged  and  the  Assembly  too 
badly.  Mile  Theroigne,  by  her  masculine  courage, 
her  patriotism,  and  her  flashing  eloquence,  is  in  a  fair 
way  to  make  people  forget  her  sex." 


A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

But  that  was  just  what  Theroigne  failed  to  do,  to 
her  own  great  regret.  Without  being  unwomanly  she 
desired  to  be  a  reformer,  and  that  was  denied  her.  It 
seemed  to  her  hard  and  cruel  that  this  should  be  so. 
She  tells  an  incident  in  her  c<  Confessions  "  which 
emphasises  the  annoyance  to  which  she  was  subjected. 

"  The  day  when  the  deputies  went  to  Notre-Dame, 
to  sing  the  Te  Deum,  they  sent  me  a  ticket  to  be 
present  at  the  ceremony,"  she  writes.  "  But  I  arrived 
there  too  late,  and  could  not  get  through  the  crowd. 
Several  patriot  deputies  invited  me  to  walk  with  them 
in  the  procession.  The  desire  to  see  such  a  solemn 
spectacle,  and  also  the  honour  of  joining  the  deputies 
in  a  public  ceremony,  made  me  accept  their  offer.  So 
I  went  part  of  the  way  in  their  ranks.  There  were 
many  who  cried  '  Ho  !  A  woman  deputy  !  That  is 
singular  !  '  Some  priestly  aristocrats  who  noticed  this 
expostulated  with  me.  I  took  their  advice  and  retired. 
There  were  a  great  number  of  people  who,  like  myself, 
were  marching  in  the  procession  with  the  deputies 
without  being  deputies  themselves.  But  they  were 
men.  At  this  moment,  feeling  extremely  humiliated, 
I  acknowledged  the  force  and  the  persistence  of  the 
masculine  pride  and  prejudice  which  oppressed  my  sex, 
and  kept  it  in  bondage." 

Urged  on  by  such  experiences,  Theroigne  devoted 
herself  to  the  cause  of  women's  emancipation. 

\ 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE     CITOYENNES 

^pHEROIGNE'S  enthusiasm  on  behalf  of  her  sex 
was  to  lead  her  far  ;  through  martyrdom, 
through  triumph,  through  degradation,  to  an  appalling 
fate  at  last.  Many  women  there  were  who  loved  as 
much  and  suffered  as  much  and  were  as  much  in 
earnest  as  she,  and  probably  not  one  of  them  all  re- 
gretted or  felt  remorse  for  what  they  had  done. 

The  Revolution  gave  them  many  opportunities. 
They  were  longing  to  show  their  mettle,  their  powers 
of  endurance,  their  patriotism,  and  their  unselfishness. 
A  common  cause  urged  them  to  do  the  thing  that  has 
always  seemed  a  difficult  task  for  women  to  achieve, 
namely,  to  unite  in  a  common  purpose,  to  form  a 
combination  which  should  give  them  power  to  solve 
the  problems  of  their  existence.  Theroigne  saw  the 
need  of  this  union  and  advocated  it  with  all  her 
strength.  That  she  was  not  more  successful  as  a 
leader  was  perhaps  the  fault  of  circumstance  and  con- 
ditions rather  than  of  herself,  and  yet  she  was  lacking 
in  some  quality  which  should  have  brought  her  into 
closer  sympathy  with  other  women.  She  understood 
men  better,  and  was  perhaps  not  tolerant  enough  of 
feminine  scruples  nor  faithful  enough  to  the  laws  of 
social  convention.  But  any  deficiency  in  tact  and 

'53 


154  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

intuition  was  counterbalanced  by  her  application  to 
practical  detail  and  her  genuine  desire  to  understand 
and  master  the  situation.  Had  she  realised  more 
clearly  the  temper  of  the  women  with  whom  she  had  to 
deal  her  task  would  have  been  easier  and  more  prolific 
in  results. 

Serious  upheavals  which  have  for  their  aim  the 
establishment  of  new  and  improved  conditions  have 
always  found  women  ready  to  participate  in  bringing 
about  social  reforms  that  touch  them  closely.  So  it 
was  at  the  time  of  the  French  Revolution.  The  ideals, 
aims,  and  faith  in  the  future  which  dwelt  in  the  hearts 
of  men  stirred  also  in  the  bosoms  of  the  women  of  the 
country.  Yet  there  was  this  difference.  Men  were 
fighting  for  the  liberty  of  the  race  ;  women  desired  in 
addition  the  liberty  of  the  sex.  The  misery,  poverty, 
and  degradation  from  which  the  masses  suffered  were 
shared  by  them  equally,  but  the  political  and  civil 
rights  for  which  men  struggled  were  doubly  debarred 
to  them. 

They  not  only  determined  therefore  to  stand  side  by 
side  with  men  in  the  great  forward  movement,  but 
they  desired  to  make  their  powers  so  much  appreciated 
that  their  companions  would  realise  their  worth,  and 
bestow  freely  upon  them  the  reward  they  were  seeking. 
This  was  no  easy  task.  Men  were  ready  in  that  day, 
as  in  any  other,  to  ridicule  the  claims  of  women  to  a 
political  and  social  equality  with  themselves.  But 
although  the  great  body  of  men  had  still  to  be  con- 
verted, women  were  not  without  advocates  amongst 
them.  Their  chief  champion  at  this  time  perhaps  was 
Condorcet,  marquis  and  republican,  who  wrote  in  his 


The  Citoyennes  155 

"Lettres  d'un  Bourgeois  de  Newhaven  a  un  citoyen 
de  Virginie,"  etc.  (1787),  that  women  should  be  con- 
sidered as  both  eligible  and  elective,  and  that  the  idea 
must  be  combated  that  they  were  illogical  and  in- 
capable of  being  placed  on  a  footing  equal  to  men. 

If,  he  said,  the  number  of  women  who  have  received 
an  exact  and  continuous  education  be  compared  with 
the  number  of  men  who  have  enjoyed  the  same 
advantages,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  repeated  opinion 
that  the  former  possess  no  initiative  cannot  be  regarded 
as  proved,  and  he  added,  "  I  am  afraid  of  getting  into 
bad  odour  with  them  if  they  read  this  article,  for  I 
am  speaking  of  their  claims  to  equality,  and  not  of 
their  natural  empire." 

Condorcet's  enthusiasm  was  not  shared  by  many  of 
his  colleagues,  and  led  to  but  little  practical  outcome. 
Women  grew  discontented  and  felt  that  justice  was  not 
being  done  to  them.  Those  who  were  most  in  earnest 
demanded  definite  rights  as  women  citizens,  but  they 
could  not  master  the  art  of  unity  and  combination, 
and  isolated  appeals  received  no  attention. 

In  spite  of  the  fact,  however,  that  they  were  refused 
their  chief  demands,  the  efforts  they  made  towards  more 
freedom  were  not  entirely  in  vain. 

They  won  privileges  of  speech,  of  conscience,  of 
appeal,  as  well  as  the  right  to  petition,  which  was 
valuable  ;  they  could  no  longer  be  arrested  or  im- 
prisoned except  as  directed  by  law,  and  they  gained, 
at  least  temporarily,  a  right  to  divorce. 

Considering  that  they  were  ready  to  sacrifice  their 
all,  life  itself  if  need  be,  to  obtain  their  desires,  these 
advantages  may  seem  but  an  inadequate  result  of 


156  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

strenuous  labours,  but  it  would  be  misleading  to  sup- 
pose so,  for  much  of  the  emancipation  of  women  has 
been  based  upon  the  exertions  of  that  period,  and  the 
real  origin  of  the  feminist  movement,  although  the 
word  c<  feminist "  was  not  then  applied  to  it,  dates  from 
the  revolutionary  attempt  to  emancipate  humanity. 

The  political  weight  of  their  opinions  may  be  largely 
discounted,  perhaps,  but  the  fact  of  their  presence  and 
personal  influence  in  all  that  went  on  cannot  be  denied. 
Women  were  in  the  vanguard  of  the  mobs ;  they 
swarmed  in  the  galleries  of  the  Assembly  and  of  the 
clubs.  They  marched  in  processions,  festive  or  riotous, 
and  invaded  the  bakers'  shops.  They  filled  the  prisons, 
surfeited  the  guillotine,  and  joined  with  men  in  acts 
of  bloodshed  and  violence  which  proved  the  state  of 
desperation  they  had  been  goaded  into,  but  did  little 
credit  to  the  restraint  and  modesty  always  regarded 
as  among  the  more  feminine  virtues.  Women  were 
keenly  interested  in  all  the  debates  ;  they  prepared 
speeches,  they  wrote  discourses,  they  organised  meet- 
ings, they  embroidered  flags  and  banners,  they  made 
shirts  and  knitted  stockings,  they  sacrificed  their 
jewels  and  other  luxurious  tastes  on  the  altar  of  liberty. 
Gone  were  the  habits  and  frivolities  of  the  old  regime, 
gone  the  coquetry  and  dilettantism  of  the  days  of 
monarchy  !  From  the  highest  to  the  lowest  they 
demanded  work — a  legitimate  means  of  earning  an 
independent  livelihood,  bread  that  they  might  eat  under 
terms  of  liberty,  and  they  asked  further  that  men 
should  not  be  allowed  to  exercise  such  trades  as  they 
considered  were  essentially  suited  to  women.  "  Leave 
us  at  least  the  needle  and  the  spinning-wheel,"  they 


The  Citoyennes  15? 

pleaded,  and  then  with  a  sigh  of  revolt  they  added 
"  Is  our  device  always  to  be  c  Work,  obey,  and  be 
silent '  ?  " 

Truly  their  lot  in  the  Revolution  was  a  hard  one. 
They  had  so  little  glory,  so  much  suffering  and 
sacrifice.  They  were  prevented,  except  in  isolated 
cases,  from  distinguishing  themselves  on  the  battle- 
field, or  in  the  legislative  house,  side  by  side  with 
men,  but  their  punishment  was  as  heavy  as  that 
meted  out  to  their  brothers.  "  Women  have  the 
right  to  mount  the  scaffold,"  cried  Olympe  de  Gouges  ; 
tc  they  ought  to  have  an  equal  right  to  mount  the 
tribunal."  Where  was  justice  ?  Whilst  in  the  hope 
of  receiving  their  due,  women  searched  ardently  for 
an  outlet  for  their  pent-up  energies.  Not  content  to 
work  and  wait  passively  in  the  home,  they  desired 
to  give  some  picturesque  or  dramatic  exhibition  of 
their  eagerness  to  play  an  active  part.  This  led  some 
of  them  to  offer  their  jewels  publicly  to  the  country 
on  September  yth,  1789.  The  president  of  the 
National  Assembly  rose  to  ask  the  house  for  an 
audience  for  those  ladies  who  wished  to  vouchsafe 
this  proof  of  patriotism.  There  was  a  sudden  hush 
in  the  Assembly,  and  then  a  burst  of  applause  as  the 
women  filed  in,  simply  attired  in  white,  without 
ornament  of  any  kind.  An  usher  was  appointed  to 
show  them  into  seats,  and  a  discourse  was  read  which 
set  forth  their  willingness  to  give  up  their  jewels, 
"  which  they  would  blush  to  wear  when  patriotism 
demanded  the  sacrifice." 

Then  the  president  thanked  these  generous  women 
in  the  name  of  the  Assembly,  and  one  by  one  they 


158  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

stepped  forward,  casket  in  hand,  to  place  their  offerings 
on  the  president's  table.  By  these  and  similar  means 
some  hundreds  of  thousands  of  francs  were  collected 
and  distributed  among  the  poor. 

But  the  real  centre  of  attraction  to  women  was 
the  club.  Even  as  Th£roigne  had  quickly  realised 
the  growing  power  and  importance  of  this  institution, 
other  women  saw  also  that  here  might  be  found  the 
very  opening  which  they  were  seeking  for  their 
enthusiasm.  But  if  they  imagined  that  men  would 
admit  them  even  here  on  equal  terms  with  themselves 
they  were  utterly  mistaken.  In  a  few  instances  their 
presence  at  meetings  was  allowed  within  certain  limits, 
and  before  long  many  of  the  societies  organised  a 
joint  or  branch  section  which  was  open  to  both  sexes ; 
but  those  women  who  believed  themselves  to  be  born 
orators,  and  were  anxious  to  air  their  views  upon  a 
platform,  were,  with  a  few  exceptions,  doomed  to 
disappointment.  And  this  state  of  affairs  led  eventually 
to  the  formation  of  women's  clubs. 

One  of  the  first  of  the  clubs  to  see  a  woman  on  its 
platform  was  the  Cercle  Sociale  ;  the  incident,  how- 
ever, was  unexpected  and  unrehearsed.  This  society 
had  a  hall  in  the  Palais  Royal,  capable  of  seating  some 
three  thousand  people.  It  had  a  large  membership 
at  a  subscription  of  eight  livres  a  month,  and  its 
motto,  inscribed  in  prominent  lettering  above  the 
speaker's  head,  was,  "  Bring  each  a  ray  of  light." 
On  November  26th,  1790,  one  Charles  Louis  Rousseau 
was  endeavouring  somewhat  unsuccessfully  to  perform 
the  injunction  of  the  motto  with  reference  more  par- 
ticularly to  woman's  political  position. 


GILBERT    ROMMB. 


159 


The  Citoycnncs  161 

"  Have  women  influence  in  government  ? "  he  asked, 
"  and,  if  so,  by  what  means  can  this  influence  be  used 
in  enhancing  the  prosperity  of  the  State  ?  What  civil 
and  political  rights  should  be  possessed  by  women  in 
the  best-governed  country  ? "  and  other  questions 
bearing  on  the  same  subject. 

Instead  of  dealing  with  the  matter  in  a  straight- 
forward and  practical  fashion,  the  speaker  strung 
together  a  number  of  platitudes,  interspersed  his  speech 
with  ill-timed  complimentary  phrases  meant  to  flatter 
his  fair  audience,  and  punctuated  the  whole  with 
theatrical  gesticulations  which  wearied  the  less  im- 
pressionable of  his  hearers,  so  that  at  last  the  president, 
fearing  that  this  uninspiring  speech  would  never  end, 
took  it  upon  himself  to  suspend  the  sitting.  This 
was  an  unexpected  blow  to  feminism,  and  a  woman 
of  commanding  figure  rose  and  asked  a  question  in 
ringing  tones,  plainly  heard  throughout  the  hall. 

"  Gentlemen,"  she  said,  "  is  it  possible  that  the 
Revolution,  which  has  for  its  object  the  attainment 
of  the  rights  of  man,  can  be  the  cause  of  Frenchmen 
showing  injustice  and  dishonesty  to  women  ?  Other 
speakers  have  been  listened  to  with  patience.  Why 
should  the  one  who  pleads  the  cause  of  women  be 
interrupted  ?  I  demand,  in  the  name  of  the  women 
citizens  present,  that  M.  Rousseau  be  allowed  to 
proceed. " 

At  these  remarks  there  was  general  applause.  The 
speaker  was  asked  herself  to  continue.  But  her 
modesty  prevented  her  saying  more  than  a  very  few 
words.  She  blamed  the  Frenchmen  for  having  become 
corrupt  and  enfeebled.  "  Since  our  compatriots  have 
10 


1 62  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

imitated  the  Romans,  let  us  imitate  the  virtues  and 
patriotism  of  the  Roman  women,"  she  cried.  There 
was  a  general  desire  amongst  them  to  elect  her 
frhidente^  but  she  refused. 

This  woman,  Etta  Palm  by  name,  of  Dutch  extrac- 
tion, and  called  Aelders  before  her  marriage,  worked 
as  well  or  even  better  than  Theroigne  in  her  sisters' 
cause.  She  did  several  notable  things  in  the  move- 
ment, attempting  to  federate  the  women's  societies 
and  establish  a  correspondence  among  them  similar 
to  that  carried  on  by  the  Jacobins.  The  oath  taken 
by  the  members  of  these  societies  was  worded  as 
follows  :  "  I  swear  to  be  faithful  to  the  nation,  to  the 
law,  and  to  the  king.  I  swear  to  help  my  husband, 
my  brothers,  and  my  children  to  fulfil  their  duties  to 
the  State  as  far  as  possible.  I  swear  to  teach  my 
children,  and  all  those  over  whom  I  have  authority, 
to  prefer  death  to  slavery." 

Etta  placed  herself  at  the  head  of  those  who  pleaded 
for  civic  and  intellectual  education.  Theroigne,  after 
seeing  her  own  club  fail,  and  realising  something  of  the 
ever-increasing  dangers  in  which  France  was  becoming 
involved,  veered  over  to  those  who  desired  military 
privileges  and  made  their  chief  aim  a  share  in  the 
national  defence.  Etta  desired  to  raise  a  statue  to  the 
wife  of  Phocion,  in  order  that  women  might  have 
before  their  eyes  a  model  of  wisdom,  modesty,  and 
simplicity — virtues  which  were  both  moral  and  civic. 
Theroigne,  realising  the  futility  of  opposing  force 
with  humility  and  goodness,  would  rather  have  con- 
structed a  temple  to  Bellona,  so  that  she  might 
command  her  votaries  to  kneel  before  the  altar  of 


The  Citoyennes  163 

the  goddess  and  utter  a  prayer  for  strength  and  ability 
in  arms. 

But  this  warlike  attitude  developed  its  full  force 
only  when  constitutional  measures  had  failed.  This 
was  not  until  after  her  return  from  Kufstein.  Until 
then  she  remained  watching  the  work  that  other 
women  were  doing  in  the  very  field  she  was  trying 
to  enter  herself,  the  field  of  political  labour.  Busy 
as  she  was  with  her  own  affairs,  she  found  time  to 
appreciate  the  efforts  that  other  women  were  making 
to  join  the  clubs  or,  this  being  denied  them,  to  found 
societies  of  their  own. 

Etta  Palm  was  one  of  the  prime  movers  in  this 
direction.  She  set  forth  in  the  following  terms  the 
part  she  thought  women  ought  to  play  in  these 
institutions  : 

Citizens,  she  declared,  have  united  in  the  eighty- 
three  departments  to  defend  the  "  Constitution.  Do 
you  not  think,  gentlemen,  that  their  wives  and  the 
mothers  of  families  could  unite  in  imitation  of  them  to 
make  it  beloved  ?  La  Societe  des  Amis  de  la  Verite 
is  the  first  society  which  has  admitted  us  to  patriotic 
meetings/*  Then  she  referred  to  the  provincial  towns, 
Creil,  Alais,  Bordeaux,  and  others,  that  had  followed 
this  example.  "  Would  it  not  be  useful,"  she  con- 
tinued, "  if  a  patriotic  society  of  citoyennes  was  formed 
in  each  section  of  the  capital,  and  if  a  central  and 
federative  circle  invited  all  the  societies  of  the  eighty- 
three  departments  to  correspond  with  them  ?  "  And 
then  followed  a  detailed  and  apparently  practical  plan 
of  federal  organisation.  Among  other  duties,  women 
were  to  combine  to  protect  young  country  girls  who 


164  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

arrived  in  the  capital  without  friends,  acquaintances,  or 
money,  and  who  ran  great  perils  in  an  unknown  city, 
to  look  after  public  education  and  bring  up  the  rising 
generation  to  be  strong  and  healthy  citizens.  Charity 
schools  were  to  be  under  their  immediate  supervision, 
and  workshops  were  to  be  founded  at  which  girls  from 
six  to  thirteen  were  to  be  taught  some  suitable  trade  in 
order  that  later  they  might  help  to  support  the  family  : 
in  short,  every  form  of  poverty  or  misery,  every  un- 
fortunate or  starving  woman,  was  to  have  a  sacred 
claim  upon  the  assistance  of  the  club. 

Unlike  Th£roigne,  Etta  Palm  was  no  orator.  "If," 
she  said,  "  the  construction  of  my  phrases  is  not 
according  to  the  rules  of  the  French  Academy,  it  is 
because  I  consulted  my  heart  rather  than  the  diction- 
ary." She  declared  that  women  were  superior  to  men 
in  vivacity  of  imagination,  in  delicacy  of  sentiment, 
in  their  resignation  during  trouble,  strength  in  grief 
and  pain,  patience  in  suffering  and  both  in  generosity 
of  soul  and  patriotic  zeal.  Thus  she  summed  up  the 
feminine  virtues.  She  spoke  of  the  sacrifice  of  jewels 
and  adornment,  and  thought  that  as  a  reward  civic 
crowns  should  replace  the  gew-gaws  which  could  only 
be  regarded  as  the  outward  signs  of  frivolity  and 
luxury.  She  also  advocated  union  to  be  achieved  by 
the  elimination  of  all  personal  hate  and  enmity.  This 
was  one  of  the  chief  doctrines  preached  by  Th£roigne. 
<c  In  that  case,"  cried  Etta  Palm,  meaning  if  they  were 
all  united,  u  what  could  fifty  thousand  vile  aristocrats 
do  against  three  hundred  thousand  soldiers  of 
liberty  ? "  All  these  arguments  were  used  by  the 
chief  women  leaders  in  the  movement.  On  April  ist, 


The  Citoycnnes  165 

1792,  only  a  few  short  months  after  Theroigne's 
triumphant  return  from  her  imprisonment  in  Austria, 
Etta  Palm  appeared  at  the  bar  of  the  Legislative  As- 
sembly as  spokeswoman  of  a  deputation  of  women  who 
demanded  : 

Firstly,  that  public  education  as  already  established 
for  boys  should  be  extended  also  to  girls. 

Secondly,  that  women  of  twenty-one  should  be  de- 
clared of  age. 

Thirdly,  that  perfect  equality  of  rights  should  exist 
between  boys  and  girls. 

Fourthly,  that  divorce  should  be  legalised. 

Although  these  suggestions  were  bold  for  her  day, 
Etta  was  not  among  the  most  advanced  of  the  women 
reformers.  Her  strength  lay  in  her  restraint.  She 
had  no  militant  plans  like  Theroigne,  and  took  no 
violent  measures  like  Rose  (or  Claire)  Lacombe,  who 
from  1893  onwards  became  the  leader  of  the  most 
revolutionary  women's  club  and  allied  herself  with  the 
emigres.  Long  before  that  date  mixed  societies  had 
been  formed  which  became  a  distinctive  feature  of  the 
club  organism.  These  Societes  Fraternelles  des  Deux 
Sexes,  as  they  were  called,  were  very  distinctive  in  their 
way,  and  gave  to  the  women  who  were  longing  to  find 
an  outlet  for  their  turbulent  feelings  the  opportunity 
to  join  in  political  meetings  and  express  their  utter 
contempt  for  all  existing  conditions,  especially  those 
which  limited  their  civic  powers.  Theroigne  was  one 
amongst  those  who  availed  herself  freely  of  these 
privileges,  and  it  is  therefore  interesting  to  trace  the 
origin  and  growth  of  these  hybrid  institutions.  The 
first  of  them  was  opened  at  Paris  in  the  early  autumn 


1 66  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

of  1790  and  held  its  sittings  in  one  of  the  halls  at 
the  Jacobins.  The  original  instigator  was  a  poor  and 
very  earnest  boarding-house  proprietor  of  the  name 
of  Claude  Dansard.  Moved  by  a  spirit  of  patriotism, 
he  caused  to  assemble  many  artisans,  street  vendors  of 
fruit  and  vegetables,  and  labourers  with  their  wives  and 
children.  The  meetings  took  place  in  the  evenings 
and  on  Sundays,  and  their  object  was  the  reading  and 
interpretation  of  the  laws  framed  by  the  National 
Assembly  and  the  Declaration  of  the  Rights  of  Man. 
Dansard  provided  the  light  required  at  these  gather- 
ings. He  always  produced  from  his  pocket  a  candle- 
end,  flint  and  tinder-box.  When  the  sitting  was 
prolonged  the  light  threatened  to  fail,  and  a  subscription 
was  raised  among  those  present  to  purchase  more 
candles,  and  the  reading  was  continued  amidst  general 
satisfaction. 

At  first  these  humble  reunions  had  something  of  a 
social  importance,  and  probably  the  admission  of  wives 
and  children  was  an  astute  move  on  the  part  of 
Dansard,  but  presently  the  social  side  was  merged 
entirely  in  the  political  influence  they  assumed.  In 
the  spring  of  1791  the  club  took  the  name  of  "Societe" 
Fraternelle  des  Patriotes  des  Deux  Sexes.  Defenders 
(later  Friends)  of  the  Constitution."  Well-known 
individuals,  both  men  and  women,  appeared  there. 
Mme  Robert,  nee  Keralio,  wife  of  the  journalist,  who 
edited  and  translated  many  works,  was  one  of  the  most 
noteworthy.  She  advocated  reform  in  the  hospitals, 
"  those  places  founded  by  public  philanthropy  for  the 
relief  of  suffering  humanity,  where  humanity  is  perhaps 
most  shamefully  ill-treated  and  persecuted."  She 


The  Citoyennes  167 

endeavoured  to  obtain  the  appointment  of  female 
as  well  as  male  inspectors,  believing  that  the  details 
of  administration  which  would  escape  the  notice  of 
men  would  be  observed  by  the  quick  eye  of  a  woman. 
<c  They  would  taste  the  soup  and  see  whether  the  meat 
was  fit  to  eat,"  she  said.  But  these  women  were  not 
to  be  chosen  from  the  luxurious  and  idle  classes. 
They  were  to  be  working-women  who  understood 
their  business.  Mme  Robert  desired  to  institute 
hospitals  for  the  diseased,  workhouses  for  the  poor, 
and  houses  of  correction  for  the  evil-doers.  Mme 
Roland,  who  joined  the  society  after  the  flight  to 
Varennes,  did  not  like  Mme  Robert,  and  described 
her  as  a  small  woman,  intellectual,  clever,  and  proud — 
but  a  little  inconsistent.  Mme  Moitte,  who  had  led 
the  women  on  to  sacrifice  their  jewels  on  the  altar 
of  the  country,  was  a  member  of  the  society,  and  Etta 
Palm,  as  well  as  Pauline  Leon.  Th6roigne  was  not 
in  Paris  during  the  days  of  its  early  popularity,  but 
she  attended  the  meetings  after  her  return  in  the 
spring  of  1792.  Among  the  men  were  Danton, 
Tallien,  Roederer,  and  Hebert. 

"  Curiosity  took  me  a  single  time  only  to  one  of 
the  public  sittings  of  the  Societe  Fraternelle,"  writes 
Mme  de  Genlis  in  her  Memoirs.  "  It  was  a  spectacle 
at  once  original,  terrifying,  and  ridiculous.  The 
women  of  the  people  spoke  there,  although  they  did 
not  mount  the  tribune,  but  they  frequently  interrupted 
the  speakers,  and  uttered  long  dissertations  without 
leaving  their  places.' '  Lamartine  compared  the 
fraternal  society  very  favourably  with  the  more  violent 
assemblies  organised  by  women.  "  This  union,"  he 


1 68  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

said,  "  was  composed  of  educated  women,  who  dis- 
cussed with  more  decency  the  social  questions  analogous 
to  their  sex,  such  as  marriage,  maternity,  the  education 
of  children,  the  institutions  of  relief,  and  the  assistance 
of  humanity.  They  were  the  philosophers  of  their  sex. 
Robespierre  was  their  oracle  and  their  idol.  The 
Utopian  and  vague  character  of  its  institutions  was 
conformable  to  the  genius  of  women,  more  adapted 
to  dream  of  the  social  happiness  than  to  form  the 
mechanism  of  societies."  If  this  were  the  truth,  it 
represents  but  a  small  section  of  thought,  for  the 
usual  temper  of  the  women  who  joined  these  clubs 
was  to  the  highest  degree  electrical. 

Another  important  fraternal  society  was  the  Societe 
Fraternelle  des  Deux  Sexes  de  la  Section  Saint- 
Genevieve — later  called,  of  the  Pantheon  Frangais. 
The  original  regulations  were  issued  on  December  1 6th, 
1790.  In  November  1793  this  society  gave  a  civil 
fete  in  honour  of  Lepelletier  and  Marat  at  the  un- 
veiling of  their  statues  in  the  Place  de  1'Estrapade. 
Theroigne  was  an  active  member  of  the  Societe 
Fraternelle  des  Minimes.  Its  president  was  Tallien, 
and  it  had  rather  more  warlike  aims  than  some  of  the 
fellow-societies.  The  Societe  Fraternelle  de  la  Section 
des  Sans-Culottes  was  one  of  the  more  advanced  in  its 
views  regarding  the  position  of  women.  Its  regula- 
tions, which  were  published  on  July  I7th,  1793, 
declared  "  that  the  right  of  acquiring  and  spreading 
instruction  and  enlightenment  belonged  to  both  sexes 
equally,  therefore  citoyennes  were  admitted  without 
distinction  to  share  the  patriotic  works  of  the  society." 
The  Societe  fraternelle  des  Amis  de  la  Patrie  held 


The  Citoyenncs  169 

meetings  in  Trinity  Church,  Rue  Saint-Denis,  and  was 
composed  of  all  good  citizens  and  citoyennes  who  were 
true  patriots  and  republicans*  Persons  were  admitted 
to  membership  on  presentation  by  four  members. 
They  took  an  oath  as  follows  :  "We  swear  to  be 
faithful  to  the  French  nation,  to  which  we  have  the 
happiness  to  belong,  and  to  the  law ;  to  maintain  the 
Republic,  one  and  indivisible  ;  Liberty  and  Equality, 
which  yield  our  happiness  and  the  destruction  of 
tyrants  ;  to  defend  individuals  and  property  or  to  die 
defending  them."  The  women's  names  were  entered 
in  a  special  register. 

The  Societe  Patriotique  et  Fraternelle  des  Citoyens 
de  la  Section  du  Theatre-Frangais  met  in  the  Grands- 
Augustins,  and  in  June  1791  published  measures  of 
safety  and  vigilance  with  regard  to  the  careful  choice 
of  electors  upon  whom  depended  that  of  the  deputies 
to  the  Legislative  Assembly. 

Most  of  the  sections  had  fraternal  societies,  and 
most  of  these  societies  made  special  rules  for  their 
women  members.  A  clause  in  the  rules  of  the  Union 
Fraternelle  des  Gobelins  explained  that  citoyennes 
admitted  into  the  society  would  be  separated  from 
the  citizens.  Women  were  not  expected  to  contribute 
to  the  working  expenses  of  the  club.  But  neither 
were  they  encouraged  to  speak,  and  this  was  a  serious 
deprivation  to  those  who  were  burning  with  ideas  and 
plans  for  the  amelioration  of  conditions,  and  desired 
above  all  things  to  help  their  brothers  in  the  coming 
struggle  for  liberty. 

The  silence  thus  imposed  upon  them  was  little  to 
the  taste  of  the  eager  women,  and  no  doubt  gave  them 


1 7°  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  idea  of  organising  clubs  of  their  own.  In  the 
provinces  the  idea  was  seized  upon  with  avidity.  In 
hundreds  of  small  towns  the  women  co-operated  in 
arranging  meetings,  in  holding  demonstrations,  in 
giving  voice  to  loyal  aims,  in  subscribing  patriotic 
gifts,  and  in  many  other  ways  demonstrating  their 
love  for  their  country.  Almost  every  popular  society 
admitted  women. 

An  important,  and  in  many  ways  typical,  women's 
club  was  formed  at  Lyons  towards  the  summer  of 
1791.  It  was  called  the  Association  des  Citoyennes 
de  Lyon  particuli&rement  devouees  a  la  Nation  et  a  la 
Loi.  As  the  name  implies,  one  of  its  chief  aims 
was  to  make  a  study  of  the  new  laws.  The  flag  of 
the  society  was  deposited  at  the  church  of  Saint- Jean. 
Strong  religious  and  puritanical  sentiments  seem  to 
have  been  characteristic  among  the  members.  They 
eschewed  the  wearing  of  jewels  as  adornments  un- 
suited  to  the  natural  beauty  of  the  human  figure,  because 
their  brilliancy  competed  with  that  of  the  eyes  and 
complexion,  and  because  by  their  very  brightness  they 
drew  attention  to  themselves  which  ought  to  be 
bestowed  upon  the  individual.  They  refused  to  wear 
garments  which  constricted  the  figure  in  a  manner 
never  intended  by  nature,  or  which  hid  under  loose 
folds  the  beautiful  lines  of  the  form.  The  hair  was 
neatly  dressed  without  artificial  adornments.  Simpli- 
city in  everything  was  the  motto.  Good  manners 
were  essential.  It  was  ruled  that  there  were  never  to 
be  more  than  three  men  present  at  the  meetings  lest 
a  greater  proportion  of  men  to  women  should  be 
deemed  immodest.  No  girl  under  eighteen  years  of 


The  Citoyennes  171 

age  was  admitted  unless  accompanied  by  her  mother 
or  an  aunt.  To  be  eligible  for  membership  it  was 
necessary  to  be  introduced  by  three  citoyennes,  to 
pay  a  subscription  of  ten  sols  per  month,  to  attend 
meetings,  which  were  held  on  Sundays  after  vespers, 
regularly,  and  to  take  the  oath  of  the  society,  which 
was  a  strong  confession  of  patriotism.  There  were 
also  stringent  rules  with  regard  to  silence.  Four 
officials  were  appointed  to  see  that  order  was  strictly 
kept.  They  were  placed  in  different  parts  of  the 
hall  and  were  called  surveillantes.  Should  any  woman 
break  the  rule  that  only  one  speaker  was  allowed  to 
speak  at  a  time,  she  was  liable  to  a  fine,  and  if  the 
hubbub  grew  general  the  president  immediately 
terminated  the  sitting. 

Naturally  enough  this  society  did  not  escape  the 
gibes  of  those  who  believed  it  impossible  to  maintain 
law,  order,  and  quiet  among  a  body  of  enthusiastic 
women.  But  at  least  it  appears  to  have  been  carried 
on  in  a  manner  which  allowed  no  room  for  any  breach 
of  circumspection.  Not  so  in  the  case  of  other  clubs 
in  which  men  were  present.  At  Chauny,  for  instance, 
pleasantries  were  indulged  in  during  the  meetings 
which  consisted  in  blowing  out  the  lights  and  dis- 
charging squibs  beneath  the  skirts  of  the  women. 
One  day  two  of  the  members,  one  of  them  being 
among  the  best  known  of  the  orators,  were  dismissed 
for  attempting  to  scratch  each  other's  eyes  out. 

Another  day  the  speaker  was  interrupted  by  the 
cracking  of  nuts.  The  president  chided  the  culprit 
and  begged  her  to  refrain  from  this  amusement  during 
the  meeting.  She  replied  that  if  he  would  crack  the 


A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

nuts  for  her  it  would  save  a  lot  of  trouble.  There- 
upon he  told  her  that  severe  punishment  was  meted 
out  to  those  who  disturbed  the  gathering  of  the 
popular  societies.  At  this  she  burst  out  laughing,  and 
before  he  could  finish  what  he  had  to  say  she  left  the 
hall,  skipping  out  in  an  indecorous  and  frisky  manner. 

At  this  club  a  new  form  of  the  Lord's  Prayer  was 
used,  addressed  to  the  king,  which  ran  :  "  Our  father 
who  art  at  the  Tuileries,  respected  be  thy  name;  thy 
reign  come  again;  thy  will  be  done  in  Paris  as  it  is 
in  the  provinces.  May  all  rascals  who  seek  to  steal 
our  bread  be  hanged  on  lanterns,  and  deliver  us  above 
all  from  the  machinations  of  the  National  Assembly. 
Amen." 

At  Coutances  in  the  Popular  Society  the  citoyennes 
were  seated  in  a  special  gallery,  but  they  overflowed 
into  the  hall  so  often  and  behaved  with  so  much 
frivolity — going  so  far  on  one  occasion  as  to  embrace 
the  speaker — that  the  committee  thought  it  well  to 
make  such  physical  demonstrations  impossible,  c<  since 
the  nation  gained  nothing  from  such  exhibitions,  and 
morality  might  lose  a  great  deal."  Jealous  husbands 
were  averse  at  this  club  to  their  wives  sitting  amongst 
members  of  the  other  sex  c<  unless  the  galleries  were 
well  lighted."  The  men  of  Cherbourg  grew  tired  of 
admitting  women  to  their  gatherings,  and  from  August 
3Oth,  1791,  members  of  the  fair  sex  were  excluded. 
Nor  were  they  allowed  to  be  present  at  private  sittings 
of  the  Amis  de  la  Constitution  at  Saint-Servan  on 
account  of  the  c<  proverbial  incontinence  of  women's 
language." 

At  Villenauxe-la-Grande  disturbances  also  took  place, 


The  Citoyennes  173 

and  it  was  found  necessary  in  order  to  secure  public 
tranquillity  that  all  women  should  be  seated  on  the 
left  side  of  the  house  and  all  men  on  the  right.  It  was 
here  that  a  rumour  was  rife  of  women  sticking  pins 
and  needles  in  the  president's  chair. 

Women  were  allowed  in  the  hall  of  the  Amis  de 
la  Liberte  et  de  1'Egalite  at  Colmar  ;  but  upon  com- 
plaints of  flippancy  being  made,  they  were  relegated 
to  a  separate  gallery.  Once,  when  there  happened 
to  be  no  speakers,  the  president  adjourned  the  house 
and  proposed  that  all  present  should  go  and  dance  the 
carmagnole  round  the  Tree  of  Liberty ;  a  proposition 
which  was  very  well  received. 

The  citoyennes  were  so  coquettish  at  Bayeux  that 
by  the  aid  of  silky  ribbons  they  transformed  their 
cockades  into  a  gay  and  unseemly  adornment  so  un- 
suitable in  the  eyes  of  the  Popular  Society  that  a 
request  was  made  to  them  not  to  wear  their  cockades 
en  bazin  and  to  cease  looking  like  actresses. 

Although  such  incidents  make  it  appear  that  the 
women  of  the  provincial  clubs  were  not  as  serious- 
minded  in  their  work  as  the  men,  this  must  not  be 
regarded  as  the  truth.  Most  of  them  were  in  deadly 
earnest,  and  if,  in  some  of  the  things  they  did,  lighter 
feminine  moods  became  apparent,  these  were  only  in 
contrast  to  the  business  they  achieved. 

There  were  women's  clubs  at  Cognac,  Orleans,  and 
Angouleme ;  and  at  Bordeaux,  according  to  one 
account,  there  were  no  fewer  than  three  separate 
feminine  societies.  At  Valence  there  were  two  clubs 
which  admitted  women.  At  Bourges  the  Popular 
Society  allowed  women  to  be  present  at  its  meetings,  and 


174  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

several  members  offered  to  make  shirts  for  the  defenders 
of  the  country.  Others  presented  various  articles  of 
more  or  less  value.  A  gift  of  Phrygian  bonnets  at 
Saint-Calais  was  received  with  delighted  cries  of 
"  Long  live  women  patriots  !  "  A  large  number  of 
women  at  Moulins  made  clothes  for  the  volunteers, 
whilst  those  of  Grenoble  knitted  socks  and  scarves. 
At  Honfleur  charitable  women  formed  a  Philanthropic 
Committee  and  excited  the  people's  liberality,  dis- 
tributing considerable  results  among  the  poor.  Gene- 
rosity was  a  prevalent  quality  among  the  patriotic 
women.  When  the  Mayor  of  Beaumont-le-Roger 
called  a  meeting  in  the  church  to  read  the  laws  to 
the  people,  he  took  out  his  watch  to  look  at  the 
time,  and  patriotic  women  citizens  demanded  that 
he  should  offer  it  upon  the  altar  of  the  country. 
When  he  refused  they  became  riotous.  The  citoy- 
ennes  of  Fontainebleau,  Brest,  and  Lorient  were 
very  active  ;  all  the  children  in  the  last  place  were 
taught  patriotic  songs,  and  the  women  formed  a 
masonic  lodge  of  their  own.  At  Tours  they  swore 
terrible  oaths  to  cherish  the  country  and  destroy  the 
aristocrats.  They  blessed  flags,  sang  stirring  songs, 
and  danced  to  patriotic  music.  This  society  boasted 
the  youngest  citoyenne  of  all.  An  ecclesiastic  with 
revolutionary  tendencies  brought  his  whole  family  to 
the  Popular  Society  and  made  a  little  speech.  <c  My 
daughter  Cornelia,"  he  said,  "  who  is  eight  months 
old,  will  be  presented  by  her  mother  and  taken  on 
to  the  platform  by  her  nurse.  She  will  enjoy  in 
anticipation  the  delights  of  true  republicanism  in  the 
midst  of  you."  Children  were  encouraged  by  their 


The  Citoyennes  175 

mothers  to  show  precocious  enthusiasm.  At  Rouen, 
where  orators  of  the  fair  sex  were  allowed  upon  the 
platform,  a  child  of  eight,  whose  name  was  Rose 
Renant,  made  a  speech  to  the  Popular  Society.  "  How 
can  I  describe  to  you  without  shuddering,"  declared 
this  imp,  "the  terrible  grief  I  should  feel  if  I  saw 
my  dear  papa  or  mamma,  my  relatives,  friends,  and 
neighbours  suffer  beneath  the  blows  of  villain  aristo- 
crats, or  fall  under  their  tyranny  ?  Rather  than  that 
such  a  terrible  misfortune  should  overcome  me,  I 
would  wish  that  the  fury  of  the  nobility  should  be 
directed  against  me  alone." 

Rose  was  not  the  only  child  patriot.  At  Dijon 
there  was  a  club  called  the  Jeunes  Amies  de  la 
Republique,  of  which  the  members  were  all  between 
eight  and  sixteen  years  of  age.  They  held  meetings 
and  harangued  their  mothers.  One  of  their  spokes- 
women, a  girl  called  Henriette  Ecureux,  deplored 
the  fact  that  she  was  not  old  enough  to  have  served 
her  country,  but  she  prayed  for  all  good  patriots,  and 
had  begun  to  weave  laurel  wreaths  for  the  occasion 
of  their  triumphal  return.  Lamartine  mentions  a 
club  of  children  between  twelve  and  fourteen  called 
"  Red  Children,"  the  baptism  of  blood  upon  the 
heads  of  these  precocious  republicans. 

Dijon,  at  any  rate,  possessed  a  far  more  serious 
institution  in  the  shape  of  a  women's  club  called 
successively  Amies  de  la  Constitution,  de  1'Egalite, 
and  de  la  Republique.  Its  aim  was  to  republicanise 
the  Dijon  ladies.  The  standard  of  the  society  was 
blessed  at  the  church  of  Saint-Michel  on  May  3Oth, 
1791,  and  was  afterwards  deposited  in  the  Hall  of 


176  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Parlement,  where  the  Amis  de  la  Constitution 
met.  In  September  of  that  year  the  president  of 
the  women's  club  asked  the  members  of  the  men's 
club  to  send  an  address  to  all  the  affiliated  clubs 
c<  inviting  their  sisters  in  the  eighty-three  departments 
to  organise  and  form  societies,  so  that  they  might 
play  a  serious  part  in  the  events  which  might  follow 
upon  war." 

Meetings  were  organised  sometimes  for  the  strangest 
reasons.  The  Boulonnaises  held  a  demonstration 
against  bachelors,  and  gave  a  ball  excluding  these 
selfish  individuals,  <c  the  fete  being  intended  for 
respectable  men."  The  women  of  Neuberg  were  so 
enthusiastic  that  young  women  swore  not  to  marry 
any  but  citizens  who  had  fought  in  the  armies.  The 
lady  members  of  the  Soci£te  Fraternelle  des  Deux 
Sexes  de  Paris  had  sworn  not  to  marry  aristocrats. 
This  example  was  followed  at  Nantes,  where  an  oath 
to  this  effect  appeared  in  verse : 

Nous,  dames  du  district  Nantais, 
Femmes,  veuves  et  demoiselles, 
Savoir  faisons  a  tous  Frar^ais. 
Surtout  qu'etant  tres  democrates, 
Nous  ne  pouvons  voir  sans  horreur 
Ces  gens  sans  esprit  et  sans  coeur 
Que  Ton  appelle  aristocrates.  .  .  . 

The  Bearnaises  were  eligible  for  election  as  members 
of  the  Popular  Society,  but  were  discontented  because 
they  could  not  vote.  At  Blois,  being  forbidden  to 
wear  the  distinctive  tricolour  ribbon,  the  citoyennes 
formed  a  society  of  their  own. 

An  account  of  a  characteristic  meeting  held  at  one 
of  the  women's  clubs  on  December  3Oth,  1792,  may 


THEROIGNE   DE   MERICOURT. 

From  an  engraving  by  Devritz  of  a  portrait  in  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale. 


177 


The  Citoyennes  i?9 

fitly  close  a  chapter  which  is  intended  to  convey  some 
impression  of  the  unrest  and  ferment  seething  in  the 
minds  of  the  women  throughout  France  during  the 
earlier  part  of  the  Revolution.  The  gathering  took 
place  in  the  presence  of  representatives  of  three  united 
administrative  bodies. 

After  the  meeting  had  been  opened  in  the  usual 
manner  by  the  woman  president,  the  minutes  of  the 
last  meeting  were  read  and  approved,  and  then  one 
of  the  citoyennes  demanded  that  before  the  pro- 
ceedings went  any  further  the  Marseillaise  should  be 
sung.  A  young  citizen  called  Maitre  and  a  woman 
citizen  of  the  name  of  Charton  sang  the  hymn, 
accompanied  by  music  and  with  a  chorus  in  which 
all  the  members  joined.  Music  was  also  played 
during  the  arrival  of  the  representatives  of  the  three 
administrative  bodies,  who  took  seats  near  the 
president.  They  wore  distinctive  badges. 

Citoyenne  Charton  made  a  speech  from  the  platform, 
extolling  the  glory  and  felicity  of  the  work  of  looking 
after  and  assisting  good  patriots.  Then  a  Mme 
Charpin  tendered  a  proposition  that  Bishop  Lamour- 
ette  should  compose  a  new  catechism  from  which 
children  might  learn  not  only  the  principles  of 
religion,  but  also  of  true  republicanism.  Citoyenne 
Pere  mounted  the  platform  next,  and  spoke  of  the 
glorious  Revolution,  which  she  laid  to  the  honour 
of  the  philosophers.  She  emphasised  the  urgency 
of  propagating  popular  societies,  in  order  that  the 
youth  of  the  country  might  be  instructed  in  the 
new  laws.  Two  other  women  addressed  the  meeting, 
and  then  a  young  citoyenne  recited  Chapters  VII. 
II 


i8o  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

and  VIII.  of  Rousseau's  u  Contrat  Social,"  followed 
by  the  Declaration  of  the  Rights  of  Man.  Then 
she  said  a  patriotic  prayer.  This  was  succeeded  by 
recitations  from  other  works,  namely,  "  The  Cate- 
chisme  de  la  R£publique "  and  the  "Almanach  de 
Pere  Gerard,"  as  well  as  further  chapters  of  the 
"  Contrat  Social "  declaimed  by  various  men  and 
women.  After  that  a  distribution  took  place  of 
prizes  given  by  the  members  of  the  district,  of  the 
department,  and  of  the  municipality.  Citizen  Chaine, 
who  had  been  presented  with  a  sabre,  took  an  oath 
never  to  use  it  except  for  the  purpose  of  destroying 
the  enemies  of  the  Republic. 

The  Marseillaise  was  sung  a  second  time,  and  the 
proceedings  ended. 

These  were  sober  and  heartfelt  doings.  In  other 
places  dancing  and  jollity,  even  gambling  and  feasting, 
went  on,  but  the  women  who  took  part  in  these 
gaieties  were  in  the  minority.  Demonstrations  by 
Catholic  women  who  had  suffered  on  account  of  the 
departure  of  refractory  priests  formed  yet  another  side 
of  the  spirit  shown  by  women  in  revolt. 

As  time  went  on  a  desperate  and  dangerous  note 
entered  into  the  club  organism,  and  women  of  a 
different  type  herded  together  with  sinister  purpose. 
Th6roigne  was  to  come  into  contact  with  them  to 
her  cost.  But  that  was  not  until  a  combination  of 
circumstances  had  made  it  necessary  for  her  to  leave 
the  scene  of  the  Revolution,  temporarily  at  least. 


CHAPTER  V 

FLIGHT   AND   CAPTURE 

PARIS  was  not  the  safest  place  for  Theroigne. 
She  must  have  been  aware  of  this.  She  pre- 
tended she  knew  nothing  of  the  kind,  and  that  the 
reasons  which  took  her  into  the  country  were  of  the 
most  ordinary  and  commonplace  character.  It  was 
quite  natural  that,  when  brought  face  to  face  with 
her  judges,  she  should  have  thought  it  wise  to  give 
a  glib  explanation  of  the  causes  which  led  to  her 
leaving  the  capital.  In  order  to  sustain  her  role  of 
perfect  innocence  it  was  necessary  to  appear  to  know 
nothing  of  any  possible  danger  awaiting  her  there. 
In  the  very  simplicity  of  Th£roigne's  account  lies  its 
cleverness. 

"  I  liked  Paris  very  much,"  she  says  naively,  c<  but 
I  had  not  enough  money  to  remain  there  for  long. 
Besides,  I  had  charged  myself  with  the  care  of  my 
brothers,  whom  I  did  not  wish  to  abandon.  I  was  not 
paid  my  income  of  five  thousand  livres,  and  I  did 
not  know  when  the  payment  would  take  place.  More- 
over, 1  had  anticipated  my  resources.  I  had  an 
advance  made  of  one  thousand  crowns  for  two  years, 
and  for  a  long  time  I  had  had  my  diamonds  in  pawn. 
I  was  greatly  in  debt,  and,  in  short,  I  had  no  other 

resources  except  a  necklace  worth  twenty-five  louis. 

181 


1 82  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

"  If  I  had  remained  in  Paris  under  the  conditions  in 
which  I  was  then  living,  the  whole  sum  would  soon 
have  been  spent,  and  I  should  have  been  under  the 
obligation  of  contracting  new  debts.  It  was  therefore 
necessary  to  change  my  manner  of  living  or  to  leave. 
Much  in  the  public  eye,  accustomed  to  a  somewhat 
luxurious  existence,  which  I  led  less  from  taste  than 
from  amour-propre^  it  was  difficult  for  me,  unless  I  dis- 
appeared from  the  scenes  familiar  to  me,  to  carry  out 
my  projects  of  economy." 

This  is  not  the  speech  of  one  whose  heart  was  in 
the  people's  cause  !  This  is  not  the  real  Theroigne, 
burning  with  ambition,  reckless,  impulsive,  and  ever 
ready  for  new  adventure  !  "I  resolved  then  and  there  to 
leave  society  and  to  live  apart,  ignored  and  unknown," 
she  continues,  as  though  all  her  life  she  had  preferred 
oblivion  to  notoriety.  "  I  took  the  name  of  Poitiers, 
and  then  I  could  more  freely  accommodate  my  manner 
of  dressing  and  my  expenses  to  my  modest  means." 
Because  she  had  done  what  she  had  done  in  Paris 
under  the  name  of  Theroigne,  because  the  royalist 
journals  contained  that  name  in  almost  every  number 
that  was  issued  from  their  unholy  presses,  perhaps 
her  object  in  assuming  another  was  of  more  significance 
than  the  mere  discarding  of  the  gaudy  amazones  and 
other  trifling  extravagances  she  had  indulged  in.  But 
still  she  flirts  with  the  idea  that  flight  had  not  been 
necessary.  "  I  asked  myself  often  whether  I  should 
stay  in  France  or  whether  I  should  return  to  my  own 
country,"  she  says,  and  then  brings  out  the  reason 
why  she  went  so  far  away.  "  The  arrival  of  my 
brother  Pierre  in  Paris  from  Li£ge,  where  he  had 


Flight  and  Capture  183 

gone  when  he  had  left  Genoa,  decided  me  to  take  the 
road  to  my  native  land." 

Then  she  becomes  bolder.  She  refers  to  the  annoy- 
ance caused  her  by  the  royalists  ;  she  admits  that  a 
rumour  of  arrests  issued  from  the  Chatelet  had  reached 
her,  but  she  says  nothing  of  her  intense  wish  to  free 
the  people,  and  her  heartfelt  interest  in  the  progress 
of  the  Revolution.  "  I  confess  that  I  left  the  stage 
of  the  Revolution  without  too  much  regret,  because 
I  suffered  every  day  from  unpleasantnesses  in  the 
tribunes  of  the  National  Assembly.  There  were 
always  some  aristocrats  there  to  whom  my  zeal  and 
my  candour  were  displeasing.  They  deluged  me  with 
sarcasms  without  ceasing.  They  annoyed  me  ;  they 
laid  traps  for  me.  Certain  patriots  even,  instead  of 
encouraging,  defending,  and  rendering  me  justice, 
turned  my  efforts  into  ridicule.  That  is  the 
truth. 

"  Besides,  I  was  assured  that  they  had  given  infor- 
mation against  me  at  the  Chatelet  for  the  affair  of 
October  5th  and  6th.  Having  done  nothing  those 
famous  days,  I  did  not  fear  anything.  Afterwards, 
however,  they  frightened  me  by  telling  me  of  the 
partiality  of  the  tribunal.  I  had  made  many  enemies, 
they  said,  and  enemies  against  whom  all  resistance 
would  be  in  vain. 

"  The  underhand  dealings  of  my  enemies,  my  pecu- 
niary position,  which  had  become  very  precarious — all, 
in  short,  urged  me  to  leave  Paris.  So  I  left  for  Liege 
by  the  diligence/' 

It  is  a  very  plausible  story,  so  plausible  that  it  leaves 
a  doubt  as  to  Theroigne's  sincerity  as  a  reformer. 


184  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Had  she  felt  deeply  then,  could  she  have  concealed 
her  feelings  under  so  trivial  a  tone  ? 

When  she  left  Paris  by  the  diligence,  Th£roigne 
found  the  vehicle  full  of  aristocrats,  who  discussed  the 
patriots  in  anything  but  gentle  terms.  In  order  to 
avoid  the  society  of  these  "coarse  people,"  she 
changed  her  seat,  and  followed  the  diligence  in  a  small 
carriage.  In  the  carriage  she  made  the  acquaintance 
of  a  certain  M.  Barrachin,  and  informed  him  in 
confidence  that  she  was  going  into  a  retreat  in  order 
to  study.  He  gave  her  a  letter  of  recommendation 
to  a  bookseller  in  Li£ge,  which  she  accepted  but  did 
not  use. 

At  Rheims  she  left  her  carriage,  which  was  going 
no  farther,  and  drove  to  Paliseul  in  a  mail-cart. 
There  she  hired  a  horse,  and  rode  into  Saint-Hubert. 
She  put  up  at  a  little  inn,  where  she  met  an  officer 
and  a  merchant.  From  the  latter  she  bought  some 
handkerchiefs  to  give  to  her  friends  at  Marcourt. 

The  officer,  who  recognised  the  moment  she  opened 
her  mouth  that  she  had  come  from  Paris,  spoke  very 
disdainfully  of  the  Revolution.  Here  apparently 
Th6roigne  forgot  the  part  she  was  playing,  which 
consisted  in  appearing  to  take  but  a  lukewarm  interest 
in  the  French  position.  She  says  she  spoke  hotly 
against  despotism,  and  that  a  spirited  argument  en- 
sued. It  turned  upon  the  patriots  of  Brabant.  At 
this  name  her  judges  pricked  up  their  ears,  for  ac- 
cording to  more  than  one  account  the  real  reason  of 
Theroigne's  absence  from  Paris  was  that  she  had 
been  sent  in  company  with  others  by  the  Jacobins  to 
spread  revolutionary  propaganda  in  this  province. 


Flight  and  Capture  185 

She  stated  boldly  that  in  reply  to  the  officer's  con- 
demnation of  the  unrest  among  the  peasants  she  had 
declared  their  cause  was  just,  and  that  Emperor 
Joseph  II.  had  wrongfully  suppressed  their  privileges 
and  restrained  their  rights.  So  excited  was  she  on 
this  question  that  she  was  unable  to  contain  herself. 
"  He  had  the  intention  of  giving  up  Brabant  in  ex- 
change for  Bavaria,"  she  cried,  u  because,  forsooth, 
he  said  that  he  liked  towns  that  had  been  burnt  better 
than  those  that  were  in  revolt. "  In  speaking  thus 
to  the  Emperor's  officer  she  was  very  indiscreet,  and 
exposed  herself  to  insult.  She  merely  relates  that 
she  felt  this  need  of  outspokenness,  and  did  not  try 
to  defend  it.  Joseph  II. 's  death,  in  February  1790, 
put  an  end  to  the  reforms  which  he  had  endeavoured 
to  institute  in  the  Low  Countries,  and  which  had 
aroused  disturbance  and  discontent  amongst  the  people. 
His  project  to  annex  Bavaria  had  already  come  to 
naught  through  the  interference  of  Frederick  the 
Great.  Joseph's  successor,  Leopold  II.,  did  everything 
possible  to  restore  order  in  the  afflicted  provinces. 

Had  it  been  true  that  Theroigne's  mission  was  to 
Brabant,  she  would  hardly  have  been  likely  to  dwell 
on  this  episode  in  her  <c  Confessions." 

From  Saint-Hubert  she  set  off  on  horseback  to 
Marcourt.  At  an  isolated  farm  in  the  midst  of  the 
forest  she  dismounted,  and  sought  refreshment  in  the 
shape  of  new  milk.  It  crossed  her  mind  that  she 
would  like  to  remain  in  this  quiet  spot,  or  at  least 
to  return  there  when  she  had  seen  her  relations  at 
Marcourt ;  but  the  farm  belonged  to  the  monks  of 
Saint-Hubert^  and  they  could  not  give  her  a  lodging. 


1 86  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

At  last  she  reached  her  native  village.  Ct  I  cannot 
express  the  pleasure  I  felt,"  she  said,  "  in  arriving, 
the  joy  of  seeing  my  village  again,  the  house  where 
I  was  born,  my  uncle,  and  indeed  my  early  comrades. 
I  quite  forgot  about  the  French  Revolution.  Every 
evening  I  went  to  the  veiUee,  when  with  my  friends 
I  joined  in  all  the  games  of  my  youth.  On  Sundays 
we  went  to  dance,  to  run,  and  to  play  at  prisoner's 
base  in  the  open  meadows." 

She  had  a  dispute  with  the  village  miller  because, 
as  she  thought,  he  charged  too  much  for  his  flour, 
but  he  answered  her  rudely  when  she  spoke  to  him 
about  it,  and  she  could  not  get  him  to  look  at  the 
matter  from  the  people's  point  of  view.  She  also 
thought  it  wrong  of  the  cure  to  accept  an  income 
for  his  work  whilst  his  parishioners  were  practically 
starving.  But,  because  she  had  known  him  in  the 
days  of  her  childhood,  she  wrote  a  letter  to  Perregaux 
begging  him  to  send  a  hundred  crowns  that  he  might 
distribute  it  amongst  the  poor,  and  then  she  changed 
her  mind,  and  ordered  the  amount  to  be  spent  in 
warm  underclothing,  because  the  curt  would  not 
accept  a  gift  of  money. 

She  had  not  forgotten  any  of  her  old  friends,  and 
never  grew  tired  of  telling  stories  about  the  wonderful 
things  she  had  seen  and  done  in  the  Revolution. 
"  She  boasted  of  having  prevented  the  Queen  from 
leaving  France,  and  showed  proudly  a  fragment  of 
one  of  her  diamond  necklaces,"  says  De  Goncourt. 
"  She  gathered  the  young  men  together,  questioned 
them  closely,  taught  them  the  revolutionary  ideas  and 
songs  that  were  in  vogue  in  Paris,  and  spread  the 


Flight  and  Capture  187 

spirit  of  revolt  around  her."  If  it  be  true  that  she 
did  any  of  these  things  she  was  very  careful  not  to 
say  so.  The  reference  to  the  Queen's  necklace  may 
be  regarded  as  absurd.  The  jewels  she  had  in  her 
possession  were  her  own. 

After  staying  in  Marcourt  for  a  month,  Theroigne 
left  there  to  go  to  Liege,  where  her  brother  Pierre 
was  awaiting  her  arrival.  The  regret  she  felt  at 
saying  good-bye  to  the  friends  of  her  early  youth 
was  counterbalanced  by  the  hope  of  continuing  her 
musical  studies  at  Liege. 

She  travelled  by  boat  to  this  city,  and  the  boat- 
man recommended  an  inn  he  knew.  Whilst  she  was 
waiting  there  for  a  room  to  be  made  ready  for  her, 
she  went  into  the  common  sitting-room,  which  was 
crowded  with  Flemings.  At  first  she  thought  they 
were  patriots,  but  she  found  that  their  opinions  differed 
vastly  from  her  own  and  that  it  was  impossible  to  carry 
on  a  fair  argument.  She  left  the  room  to  escape  from 
their  unpleasant  remarks. 

The  very  next  day  her  brother  fetched  her  from 
Liege  and  took  her  to  La  Boverie,  a  little  village 
half  a  league  away,  where  she  stayed  at  the  White 
Cross  Inn.  For  a  time  she  lived  there  very  quietly, 
seeing  no  friends,  taking  no  part  in  the  public  meet- 
ings or  gatherings  held  at  Li6ge,  and,  indeed,  rarely 
leaving  her  lodgings  except  to  fetch  the  Gazette  and 
other  journals  from  a  bookseller's  shop  in  the  neigh- 
bouring town.  She  soon  found  the  country  dreary. 
She  missed  the  stir  and  excitement  of  the  Revolution. 
She  dared  not  confess  that  she  would  have  liked  to 
return  to  Paris,  but  she  spoke  of  going  to  Brabant 


1 88  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

instead.  She  went  so  far  as  to  take  out  her  pass- 
port, and  then  changed  her  mind.  She  felt  that  she 
had  not  enough  money  to  indulge  this  fancy,  and 
discarded  it  for  the  sake  of  her  brothers.  The  only 
way  to  save  expense  was  to  remain  in  her  retreat. 
If  she  left  it  she  would  be  wronging  those  who  were 
dependent  on  her.  By  this  time  she  had  pawned  her 
last  diamond  necklace.  Her  income  had  been  antici- 
pated. Her  board  and  lodging  at  La  Boverie  was 
costing  her  five  crowns  a  month.  Her  banker,  Perre- 
gaux,  sent  her  only  four  louis  every  month.  Many 
of  her  jewels,  left  at  the  Mont  de  Piet6  in  Paris, 
had  been  sold  because  she  could  not  afford  to  redeem 
them. 

The  Mont  de  Pi6te  was  at  that  time  a  recent  institu- 
tion in  France.  On  December  9th,  1777,  Louis  XVI. 
issued  Letters  Patent  stating  that  the  good  effects 
produced  by  Monts  de  Piete  in  the  different  coun- 
tries and  provinces  of  Europe,  especially  in  Italy, 
Flanders,  and  Hainault,  left  no  doubt  that  such 
establishments,  both  in  Paris  and  in  the  principal 
towns  in  France,  would  result  in  advantage  to  the 
people.  It  was  hoped  that  their  existence  would  pre- 
vent the  "  disorders  introduced  by  usury "  which  had 
ruined  many  families.  Three  days  later  Parlement 
registered  the  decree  for  governmental  pawn-shops. 

Theroigne  took  advantage  of  this  method  of  bor- 
rowing money.  Between  June  1789  and  May  1790 
she  had  pledged  valuables  to  the  extent  of  between 
seven  and  eight  thousands  of  livres,  consisting  of 
gold  and  diamond  bracelets,  sets  of  silver  plate  and 
spoons,  cruets  and  stoppers,  a  golden  casket,  and 


Flight  and  Capture  189 

diamond  rings,  earrings,  and  a  necklace.  The  rule 
was  that  the  securities  for  loans  were  kept  for  a 
year,  and,  if  not  claimed  by  then,  were  sold  a  month 
later. 

Theroigne's  last  jewel  was  pledged  at  Liege,  and 
afterwards  her  letters  to  M.  Perregaux,  whilst  they 
make  clear  her  devotion  to  her  brothers,  deal  chiefly 
with  her  increasing  financial  straits. 

"  I  thank  you  very  much  for  having  sent  me  the 
report  of  the  proceedings  of  the  Chatelet,"  she  wrote 
on  October  1 6th,  "  and  I  must  thank  you  also  for 
having  accepted  the  little  arrangement  which  I  pro- 
posed to  you.  If  you  will  kindly  advance  three 
months7  money  to  my  brother,  in  order  that  he  may 
have  my  things  returned,  you  will  greatly  please  me. 
According  to  our  arrangement  of  four  louis  a  month, 
that  will  be  twelve  louis  you  will  have  to  give  him, 
and  for  three  months  you  will  send  nothing  to  Li£ge. 
If  my  brother  requires  your  help  or  advice  in  arrang- 
ing my  little  affairs,  or  in  having  my  things  returned 
to  me  more  cheaply,  I  would  be  obliged,  monsieur, 
if  you  would  continue  your  kindness  to  me.  I  should 
be  afraid  of  bothering  you  too  much  if  I  did  not 
rely  especially  on  the  pleasure  you  have  taken  in 
helping  me." 

She  wrote  to  Perregaux  again  from  Liege  on  De- 
cember 2nd,  1790,  still  referring  to  the  pledged 
jewels. 

"  Your  letter  was  a  very  agreeable  surprise  to  me 
when  I  saw  from  it  that  you  had  the  kindness  to 
redeem  those  of  my  effects  which  I  had  regarded  as 
sold,"  she  says.  "I  do  not  know  how  to  express 


19°  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  gratitude  with  which  the  nobility  of  your  act 
inspires  me.  I  shall  always  remember  your  devotion. 
I  accept  your  generous  offer  to  redeem  my  bracelets 
and  sell  them  when  you  can  get  a  fair  price  for  them. 
I  shall  leave  it  in  your  hands.  As  for  the  silver  plate 
and  the  casket,  please  do  not  allow  these  to  be  sold. 

"  I  beg  of  you  to  send  some  one  to  pay  the  interest 
on  a  loan  of  eleven  hundred  livres,  the  term  of  which 
expires  on  the  Qth  of  this  month,  and  the  acknow- 
ledgment of  which  I  enclose  in  my  letter  with  two 
others,  one  for  a  hundred  and  forty  livres  and  the 
other  for  ninety  livres.  If  the  effects  referred  to  in 
the  two  last  have  been  sold  they  will  give  you  the 
balance  due,  if  they  are  not  I  should  be  grateful  if 
you  would  redeem  them,  and  hope  that  you  will  soon 
be  able  to  sell  the  bracelet  and  recoup  yourself  for 
your  further  advances.  I  still  have  a  number  of 
diamonds  to  sell,  and  should  like  to  get  rid  of  them, 
as  the  interest  is  ruinous.  1  will  send  you  my  contract 
immediately,  with  the  other  papers,  so  that  you  will 
know  what  M.  de  Persan  owes  me.  You  have 
promised  to  help  me  with  your  advice,  so  that  I  and 
my  brothers  may  be  paid,  and  for  this  we  shall  be 
eternally  grateful  to  you. 

"  I  am  subscribing  to  the  Journal  de  1789,  which 
I  wish  to  receive  at  Liege.  It  will  be  necessary  to 
add  a  trifle  for  this.  You  will  do  me  a  great  favour 
if  you  send  the  enclosed  receipt  to  the  office  of  the 
paper  and  arrange  this  little  matter  for  me.  I  ask 
you  to  do  a  great  many  things,  don't  I  ?  If  you  dare 
to  say  '  yes,'  you  will  deal  me  a  terrible  blow."  It  is 
not  often  Th£roigne  gives  such  a  feminine  touch 


Flight  and  Capture  191 

to  her  letters,  but  her  constant  demands  for  money 
grow  rather  wearisome. 

Her  dislike  of  inactivity  soon  became  overwhelming, 
and  her  restlessness  increased  every  time  she  walked  in 
the  meadows  of  La  Boverie  or  on  the  banks  of  the 
Meuse  and  met  groups  of  patriots  from  Brabant.  She 
could  hear  the  roar  of  distant  cannon,  and  her  curiosity 
to  learn  the  result  of  the  fighting  was  so  intense  that 
she  questioned  those  she  met.  Then  a  strange  thing 
took  place.  She  was  suspected  of  being  an  imperial 
spy,  and  was  arrested  and  taken  to  Tilleur,  where  she 
speedily  undeceived  her  captors  and  told  them  her  real 
views.  Nevertheless,  because  they  were  not  satisfied 
with  her  statements  regarding  van  der  Noot,  they 
wanted  to  take  her  to  Namur.  Her  eldest  brother  and 
the  people  at  the  White  Cross  Inn  did  their  best  to 
see  that  she  was  set  free  at  the  first  possible  moment. 
"  It  is  true  I  was  a  patriot,"  she  says,  "  but  not  with 
the  same  principles  as  van  der  Noot,  for  I  never  sup- 
ported the  nobility  and  I  did  not  see  that  it  was 
necessary  for  my  country  to  declare  its  independence. 
I  only  desired  that  the  people  should  be  represented 
and  that  abuses  should  be  removed." 

To  understand  Theroigne's  attitude  towards  van  der 
Noot,  it  is  necessary  to  remember  that  the  third  estate 
of  Brabant  was  upholding  the  very  principles  of  the 
social  and  political  system  which  the  third  estate  in 
France  was  seeking  to  destroy.  Joseph  II.  represented 
in  many  ways  the  progressive  spirit  of  the  day  and, 
finding  the  estates  intractable,  dissolved  them  and 
cancelled  the  form  of  constitution  known  as  the 
Joyous  Entry,  together  with  the  ancient  liberties  of 


i92  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  province.  Hendrik  van  der  Noot,  advocate  to  the 
sovereign  council  of  Brabant,  a  man  of  but  mediocre 
talents,  though  courageous  and  animated  by  his  love 
of  justice,  became  the  people's  idol  and  organised  a 
riot  in  Brussels  which  spread  throughout  the  district. 
Van  der  Noot  was  closely  identified  with  the  cause  of 
malcontent  hierarchy.  He  published  a  "  Memoir  on 
the  Rights  of  the  People  of  Brabant,"  but  his  teachings 
were  disputed  by  a  growing  democratic  party  which 
had  imbibed  French  theories  from  the  emissaries  of 
that  country,  who  were  busy  in  1790  in  inciting  the 
masses  to  demand  a  free  National  Assembly  on  the 
principle  of  their  own.  The  Congress  at  Brussels 
employed  force  against  the  rebels.  On  the  accession  of 
Leopold,  he  offered,  as  already  stated,  to  restore  the 
liberties  of  the  Austrian  Netherlands  of  which  they 
had  been  deprived  in  his  brother  Joseph's  reign,  and 
demanded  in  return  that  the  province  should  swear 
allegiance  to  himself.  If  his  terms  were  not  accepted 
by  November  2ist  he  threatened  to  enforce  them,  and 
sent  soldiers  to  supplement  the  Austrian  troops  already 
at  Luxemburg.  The  republican  leaders  made  a  vain 
effort  to  improve  the  position,  and  Leopold,  refusing  to 
grant  an  extension  of  time  for  consideration,  dispatched 
troops  on  the  22nd  of  the  month  to  Brussels.  Re- 
sistance was  impossible.  Van  der  Noot  and  his  col- 
leagues fled,  the  Congress  dissolved  itself,  and  the 
Belgian  Republic,  after  being  in  existence  but  a  few 
months,  ceased  to  be. 

Mrs.  Elliott,  who  was  in  Brussels  in  the  spring  of 
1 790,  saw  something  of  the  revolt  in  the  Low  Countries. 
When   she  desired  to  leave  for  England,   permission 


Flight  and  Capture  193 

was  refused  her,  and  in  an  interview  with  van  der 
Noot  she  learned  that  this  was  because  she  was  sus- 
pected of  being  of  the  party  of  the  Due  d'Orl£ans. 
She  assured  him  that  this  was  not  so  ;  that  she  always 
was  a  royalist  and  ever  should  be  such  ;  that  she  was 
neither  a  van  der  Nootist  nor  a  Vonckist.  "  I  wit- 
nessed many  terrible  scenes  in  Brussels,  similar  to  those 
in  France/'  writes  Mrs.  Elliott.  "  I  saw  poor  creatures 
murdered  in  the  streets  because  they  did  not  pull  their 
hats  off  to  Capuchins,  or  for  passing  a  bust  of  van  der 
Noot  without  bowing  very  low.  His  busts  were  all 
over  the  town  and  even  in  the  theatres.  Van  der  Noot 
was  a  very  odd-looking  man.  He  was,  I  fancy,  about 
forty,  rather  tall  and  thin.  He  was  full  of  vivacity, 
and  did  not  look  ill-natured,  though  very  ugly.  I 
never  shall  forget  his  dress.  It  was  a  Quaker-coloured 
silk  coat  lined  with  pink  and  narrow  silver-lace,  a  white 
dimity  waistcoat,  white  cotton  stockings,  net  ruffles 
with  fringe  round  them,  and  a  powdered  bob-wig." 

On  the  subject  of  van  der  Noot's  flight,  Th£roigne 
wrote  in  her  letter  of  December  2nd  to  Perregaux: 
"  You  know  doubtless  that  the  Estates,  van  der  Noot 
and  his  satellites,  formerly  the  idols  of  the  people,  who 
have  to-day  become  the  object  of  their  hate  and  their 
mistrust,  have  been  treated  as  they  deserved.  Mme 
Pineau's  house  has  been  pillaged,  van  der  Noot  has  had 
to  save  himself  from  the  just  vengeance  of  the  people 
whom  he  betrayed  and  sacrificed  to  his  personal  interests, 
and  they  have  tried  in  vain  to  rekindle  fanaticism  by 
renewed  processions,  which  have  not  had  the  slightest 
influence  on  the  spirit  of  the  people,  who  have  had  their 
eyes  opened.  They  say  that  in  the  end  the  party  of 


194  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

aristocrats  and  royalists  will  be  crushed  by  one  of  the 
democrats,  who,  in  conjunction  with  our  old  general 
released  from  the  prisons  of  Louvain,  rallies  the  people 
to  resist  the  Austrians  who  are  already  at  Namur." 

Now,  the  general  to  whom  Theroigne  referred  was 
van  der  Meersch,  who  had  at  first  commanded  the 
insurrectionary  troops.  He  followed  Vonck,  the  leader 
of  the  democrats,  and  was  imprisoned  by  the  Estates 
and  not  set  free  until  the  return  of  the  Austrians.  It 
was  therefore  impossible  that  he  could  have  acted  in 
the  manner  she  indicated,  and  this  mistake  on  her  part 
goes  to  prove  that  she  did  no  more  than  follow  the 
course  of  events  with  interest  from  afar. 

It  is  natural  enough  that  her  presence  near  Li6ge 
should  have  given  rise  to  suspicion.  Emissaries,  both 
women  and  men,  were  sent  from  France  to  Belgium 
in  that  year.  In  1791  there  appeared  a  little  book 
entitled  u  Julie,  Philosophe  ou  le  bon  Patriote,"  which 
purported  to  be  the  history  of  one  of  these  women 
who  became  first  the  agent  and  afterwards  the  victim 
of  the  revolutions  in  Holland,  Brabant,  and  France. 
The  story  went  that  Julie  was  charged  by  Mirabeau 
to  play  some  such  part  as  was  falsely  attributed  to 
Theroigne.  The  said  Julie  was  born  in  1760,  and 
had  several  lovers — the  Chevalier  de  Morande  and 
de  Calonne  in  London,  Mirabeau  in  Paris,  and  van 
der  Noot  in  Brussels.  Mirabeau  dispatched  her  to 
the  latter  city  in  charge  of  a  sealed  packet  addressed 
to  van  der  Noot.  The  revolutionist  received  her 
literally  with  open  arms.  He  was  charmed  with  her, 
begged  her  to  stay  for  dinner,  invited  her  to  supper, 
and  in  the  end  refused  to  let  her  go.  Finally  she 


LEOPOLD   II.,   EMPEROR   OF   AUSTRIA. 


195 


Flight  and  Capture  19? 

broke  away  from  him,  and  went  over  to  the  democratic 
party,  and,  as  a  Vonckist,  gave  vent  to  her  revengeful 
feelings  against  van  der  Noot  much  in  the  same 
strain  that  Theroigne  did  when  writing  to  Perregaux. 
Indeed,  the  warmth  of  feeling  she  put  into  her 
remarks  to  this  friend  contrast  strangely  with  the 
colourless  and  guarded  tone  of  her  confessions  under 
examination.  In  this  same  letter  of  December  2nd 
she  gives  him  to  understand  that  she  was  charmed 
to  hear  of  Duport-Dutertre's  appointment  to  be 
Keeper  of  the  Seals.  The  advocate  had  won  this 
post  through  the  influence  of  Lafayette,  replacing 
Champion  de  Cic£.  He  was  one  of  the  presumed 
authors  of  the  "  Histoire  de  la  Revolution  par  deux 
Amis  de  la  Libert6,"  and  ended  his  life  on  the  scaffold 
in  November  1793. 

u  He  alone  will  be  charged  with  the  notification  of 
the  decrees  of  the  National  Assembly,"  says  Theroigne. 
tc  This  will  enrage  the  party  of  the  Blacks,  who  can 
no  longer  revenge  themselves  by  trying  to  ridicule 
virtue.  I  hope  that  justice,  patriotism,  and  good 
manners  will  accompany  all  the  actions  of  the  one 
whose  elevation  is  an  application  of  the  principles  of 
the  rights  of  man  and  of  the  citizen,  to  which  the 
King  at  first  refused  his  acceptance  ;  by  the  choice 
of  such  a  minister  he  appears  to  wish  to  turn  away 
the  just  suspicions  which  his  past  conduct  inspired. 
If  this  is  in  good  faith,  it  is  one  more  triumph  for 
the  Revolution. 

"  I  shall  return  to  France  in  six  months,"  she 
continues.  "  If  I  were  there  now  I  would  present  a 
cockade  to  the  generous  citizen  who  gave  such  a 

12 


198  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

good  example  by  denouncing  that  infamous  Assonville 
who  bought  votes  to  have  himself  elected  Juge  de 
Paix."  And  she  begs  him,  if  possible,  to  discover 
the  name  of  this  excellent  patriot  and  send  it  to  her 
when  he  writes,  addressing  his  letter  to  M.  Fran$ois 
Person,  at  Saint-Esprit  couronne  sur  Meuse  a  Liege. 

But  in  her  "  Confessions  "  she  says  nothing  of  these 
opinions  and  enthusiasms,  nor  does  she  refer  to  her 
intention  to  return  to  Paris.  On  the  contrary,  she 
states  that  she  settled  down  so  happily  among  her 
relatives  that  she  resolved  never  to  return  to  France. 
Some  of  her  cousins  went  to  see  her  at  La  Boverie, 
and  invited  her  to  the  fair  at  Xhoris.  She  went  there 
accompanied  by  her  brother,  and  stayed  with  her 
uncle,  while  Pierre  returned  to  the  White  Cross  Inn 
without  her.  Then  she  sent  him  to  Paris  to  fetch 
her  remaining  belongings,  and  ordered  him  to  bring 
back  her  younger  brother,  whom  she  could  no  longer 
afford  to  keep  idle  in  the  capital.  They  all  met  again 
at  La  Boverie. 

There  was  a  distinct  danger  at  this  time  that  Liege 
and  the  surrounding  country  would  become  the  centre 
of  an  insurrection.  Numbers  of  soldiers  were  arriving 
every  day,  and  it  was  said  that  they  would  be  billeted 
on  the  inhabitants.  Rumours  to  this  effect  made 
Theroigne  decide  to  return  to  Xhoris  and  settle  down 
there  for  a  time.  She  went  so  far  as  to  purchase  a 
piece  of  land,  and  her  uncle  promised  to  give  her  a 
small  house,  for  all  of  which  she  was  to  pay  at  her 
leisure.  This  plan  was  looked  upon  unfavourably 
by  the  authorities  of  the  little  village.  Theroigne 
was  still  regarded  with  suspicion.  Then  it  was  found 


Flight  and  Capture  199 

that  the  situation  at  Liege  was  not  as  acute  as  had 
been  feared.  The  Imperialist  soldiers  bore  themselves 
with  restraint,  and  there  was  no  fighting.  Again 
Theroigne  changed  her  plans.  She  had  not  yet  paid 
for  her  land,  and  so  there  was  no  reason  why  she 
should  not  return  to  La  Boverie.  She  was  still 
troubled  because  she  had  not  received  her  income 
for  three  years,  and  she  kept  up  the  myth  that  fifteen 
thousand  livres  were  owing  to  her.  At  any  rate,  she 
made  the  story  serve  as  a  good  excuse  for  a  journey 
to  Paris,  which  was  to  have  the  ostensible  reason  of 
looking  after  her  business  affairs.  But  when  she  had 
taken  out  a  fresh  passport,  her  brothers  objected  to 
her  departure.  They  feared — who  can  say  what  ? 
Perhaps  that  she  would  be  arrested  and  imprisoned  ; 
at  the  best  that  she  would  become  unsettled  and  be 
drawn  again  into  the  dangerous-  stream  of  a  political 
career.  After  much  discussion,  Theroigne  abandoned 
her  plan,  and  to  all  appearances  settled  down  to  a 
hum-drum  country  life,  commenced  a  new  course  of 
study,  and  busied  herself  in  guarding  her  brothers' 
interests.  She  invested  in  a  new  supply  of  linen, 
and  was  about  to  make  other  changes  in  her  household 
arrangements,  when  a  thunderbolt  fell.  She  was 
captured  by  aristocrats.  In  her  picturesque  language 
she  says  :  "  They  achieved  a  masterpiece  by  drawing 
me  pitilessly  from  my  lair  and  arresting  me  without 
the  slightest  grounds  for  their  action." 

And  she  maintained  her  innocence  to  the  last. 

The  Austrians  entered  Liege  on  January  I2th,  1791. 
On  February  I5th  the  Comte  de  la  Valette,  with  his 
companions,  the  Comte  de  Saint-Malon  and  a  sub- 


20o  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

officer  Lechoux,  captured  Theroigne  by  a  ruse  at  La 
Boverie.  They  had  official  authority  for  their  daring 
act.  Mercy- Argenteau,  at  that  time  ambassador  to 
the  Emperor  in  the  Low  Countries,  addressed  a  letter 
to  Kaunitz  on  February  6th,  in  which  he  wrote : 
"  Zealots  are  arriving  here.  There  is  one  of  the  name 
of  Carra  in  the  country,  who  is  an  enemy  to  all 
authority.  I  shall  have  him  closely  watched.  They 
also  mention  the  woman  called  Theroigne  de  Mericourt, 
who  was  at  the  head  of  the  Queen's  enemies  on 
October  5th  and  6th.  She  is  to  be  found  in  the 
province  of  Luxemburg,  and  carries  on  a  correspond- 
ence with  our  enrages  of  Paris  and  of  Li6ge.  A 
Frenchman  furnished  with  good  letters  of  recommend- 
ation came  to  ask  my  permission  to  kidnap  her  secretly, 
herself  and  her  papers  ;  I  gave  my  sanction,  and  ordered 
the  escort  to  be  strengthened  by  a  small  mounted 
patrol.  If  the  capture  is  made  they  will  conduct  the 
prisoner  to  Freiburg,  there  to  await  whatever  fate  may 
be  decided  upon  as  most  suitable  for  her." 

It  was  only  natural  that  the  man  who  had  spent 
long  and  laborious  years  in  safeguarding  the  interests 
of  Marie-Antoinette  should  be  strongly  prejudiced 
against  any  one  whose  good  faith  towards  the  Queen 
had  been  impugned  by  so  much  as  a  breath  of  sus- 
picion. Theroigne,  however  innocent  she  may  have 
been  otherwise,  had  allowed  her  tongue  free  rein. 
This  fact  alone,  and  it  must  have  reached  his  ears,  was 
enough  to  make  Mercy- Argenteau  judge  her  unheard. 
Nor  was  it  only  the  minister  who  judged.  The  press 
had  a  great  deal  to  say  in  the  matter  ;  much  of  it 
humorous,  some  of  it  serious. 


Flight  and  Capture  201 

The  Journal  Qeneral  announced  the  news  of  her 
arrest  in  these  terms  :  "  The  well-beloved  of  Populus, 
the  confidante  of  Mirabeau,  the  famous  Theroigne,  has 
been  arrested  near  Luxemburg,  and  conducted  to  Vienna 
in  Austria.  They  assert  that  the  Jacobins  Club  intends 
to  send  an  army  of  five  hundred  thousand  National 
Guards  to  menace  the  Emperor  if  he  refuses  to 
release  this  heroine,  since  it  is  of  importance  to  their 
principal  members  that  she  should  not  betray  their 
secrets." 

The  Moniteur  of  April  loth  states  in  its  correspond- 
ence from  Vienna  of  March  I9th  that  u  People  speak 
of  a  prisoner  of  state  who  is  being  brought  to  Vienna ; 
they  presume  arriving  from  the  Low  Countries  (it  is 
said  from  Brussels).  Rumour  reports  that  this  indi- 
vidual is  a  woman  who  made  herself  conspicuous  in 
France  during  the  Revolution.  They  call  her  Mile 
Theroigne  de  Mericourt.  The  oddest  remarks  are 
made  on  this  subject.  They  presume  that  this  girl, 
being  implicated  by  the  proceedings  commenced  by  the 
Court  of  the  Chatelet  in  Paris  concerning  the  fatal  days 
of  October  5th  and  6th,  1789,  and  having  taken  to 
flight,  the  Emperor  has  the  right  to  have  her  seized 
on  his  territory,  and  that  His  Imperial  Majesty  has 
also  the  right  to  have  her  judged  by  his  tribunals,  and 
even  to  condemn  her  to  the  extreme  penalty  of  the 
law.  This  revolting  absurdity  is  only  worthy  of 
refutation.  It  would  be  ignominious  for  the  subjects 
of  the  Emperor  to  suspect  His  Imperial  Majesty  of 
being  capable  of  such  an  attempt,  in  which  indignity 
would  be  allied  with  barbarism." 

The  royalists  rejoiced  greatly  when  they  heard  of  the 


2O2  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

arrest   of  Theroigne.     They  celebrated  the   event   of 
her  consequent  death  in  verses,  beginning  : 

Ecoutez,  grande  nation, 

Et  pretez  grande  attention  : 

La  demoiselle  Theroigne 

Vient  d'attraper  un  coup  de  peigne 

Qui  deTrise  ses  grands  projets  : 

Helas !  c'£taient  de  grands  forfaits ! 

and  concluding  : 

Et  tandis  que  nous  devisons 
Avec  nos  petites  chansons, 
Autour  du  cou  de  la  donzelle, 
Un  bourreau  tourne  une  ficelle. 
Pleurez,  malheureux  Populus, 
Car  votre  maitresse  n'est  plus  ! 

Fortunately  for  Theroigne  things  were  not  quite  as 
bad  as  that.  She  had  not  suffered  the  extreme  penalty 
of  the  law. 

The  idea  that  Theroigne  had  left  Paris  in  1790  to 
fulfil  a  revolutionary  mission  in  her  own  country  was 
developed  in  a  pamphlet  by  M.  Carra,  dated  April  ist, 
which  denounced  Marechal  Bender  to  the  Jacobins. 

"  The  society/*  said  the  denunciation,  "  sent  Mile 
Theroigne  to  complete  the  great  work  of  propaganda 
in  Brabant.  This  heroine  merited  this  flattering  dis- 
tinction in  every  way.  She  had  given  proofs  of  her 
powers  on  the  ever-memorable  days  of  October  5th 
and  6th.  Since  this  epoch  Mile  Theroigne  has  rendered 
the  most  important  services  to  the  society.  Her 
indefatigable  zeal  and  her  unceasing  activity  have  made 
more  proselytes  than  the  papers  of  our  most  celebrated 
journalists  could  ever  do.  You  know,  gentlemen,  that 
I  am  more  given  by  nature  to  injure  than  to  praise 


Flight  and  Capture  203 

people ;  you  know,  besides,  that  Mme  Carra,  my  honour- 
able spouse,  merits  and  possesses  all  my  affections  ;  so 
that  there  is  no  reason  why  you  should  suspect  my 
motives  or  my  good  faith  when  I  shower  praise  upon 
the  illustrious  lady  for  whom  we  are  all  weeping. 

"  Mile  Mericourt  left  Paris  after  having  received  our 
orders,  and  being  well  furnished  with  assignats,  to  go 
and  execute  our  schemes.  Four  or  five  zealous  patriots 
set  off  in  her  company,  in  order  to  co-operate  with  all 
their  might  in  the  propagation  of  the  great  movement. 
She  started  by  making  an  opening  at  Brussels,  but 
found  this  stage  unworthy  of  her  talents.  She  made, 
I  can  assure  you,  some  important  conquests  in  very 
little  time  by  the  aid  of  assignats  and  punch,  of  punch 
and  assignats.  Already  many  of  the  Brabant  people 
had  adopted  our  principles,  already  general  feeling  was 
veering  over  to  our  side.  I  was  already  flattering 
myself  that  I  should  see  my  patriotic  works  made 
welcome  in  this  country,  already  I  had  made  my 
creditors  understand  that  the  results  of  our  subscriptions 
for  the  Annals  of  the  club  would  be  sufficient  to  pay 
my  debts — and  all  this  as  a  result  of  the  invaluable 
assistance  of  Mile  Theroigne  de  Mericourt.  Oh, 
shame,  oh,  despair  !  Mile  Theroigne  has  been 
hanged,  and  our  projects  have  come  to  naught." 

He  then  went  on  to  say  that  Marechal  Bender,  "  the 
inhuman  monster  derived  from  the  forests  of  Hungary/' 
failing  to  be  moved  by  the  charms  of  the  nymphlike 
Theroigne,  had  seized  her  person,  and  had  had  her 
executed  in  a  twinkling  of  an  eye,  chasing  her  fellow 
workers  out  of  Brabant.  After  a  further  out-pouring 
of  his  wrath  against  the  said  Marshal  Bender  a 


204  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

resolution  was  passed  that  lie  should  be  hanged  for 
hanging  the  immortal  Theroigne. 

The  royalist  journal,  the  Feuille  du  Jour,  of  March 
ist,  1791,  after  saying  that  Theroigne  had  been  arrested 
by  French  officers,  went  on  half  in  joke,  half  seriously  : 
"They  say  that  having  learnt  that  Mile  Theroigne 
was  at  Namur,  these  young  soldiers  went  there,  de- 
manded dinner,  paid  their  court  to  her ;  and  since  Mile 
Theroigne,  in  exercising  the  apostleship,  has  not  re- 
nounced the  benefices  of  gallantry,  the  gentlemen  in 
question  had  no  trouble  in  overcoming  her  scruples. 
In  the  effusion  of  her  confidence  and  love  she  divulged 
the  motives  and  secrets  of  her  mission  and  gave  up 
all  her  papers  relating  to  matters  in  Brabant.  They 
believed  that  she  was  dangerous  enough  to  have  her 
pointed  out  to  the  Government  and  to  see  that  she  was 
taken  prisoner.  Some  declared  that  they  only  saw 
fit  to  give  her  up  out  of  spite  when  they  recognised 
that  her  health  was  no  better  than  her  politics." 

This  scurrilous  paper  added  to  its  suggestive  re- 
marks that  "the  Comte  de  Mercy-Argenteau  had 
reassured  her  fully,  telling  her  that  she  was  safe  from 
all  peril  so  long  as  nothing  was  laid  to  her  charge ; 
but  if  the  suspicions  against  her  were  confirmed,  he 
would  use  all  his  influence  and  all  his  credit  to  have 
her  hanged."  Before  the  end  of  the  month  they  had 
completed  her  sentence.  <c  They  say  that  Mile 
Theroigne  has  been  hanged.  Weep,  oh  friends  ..." 

The  pessimistic  views  taken  by  these  journals  were 
never  destined  to  be  literally  fulfilled,  but  the  truth 
was  serious  enough  to  affect  the  victim  of  the  capture 
and  her  friends  to  a  considerable  degree. 


Flight  and  Capture  205 

Theroigne's  arrest  made  a  great  impression  on  her 
brothers.  The  eldest  wrote  to  Perregaux  to  tell  him 
that  she  had  disappeared.  u  They  say  my  sister  has 
been  taken  back  to  Paris  by  the  police.  If  that  is 
the  case,  can  she  have  been  kidnapped  by  force  by  any 
lover  that  she  may  have  in  the  capital,  or  has  she  been 
accused  of  anything  ?  Monsieur,  I  implore  you  to 
use  every  possible  means  to  secure  her  release,  and  to 
inform  me  at  the  same  time  who  could  have  occasioned 
this  nocturnal  removal.  You  would  greatly  oblige 
not  only  my  said  sister  but  also  myself,  being  a  great 
help  to  me  in  my  suspense.  .  .  . " 

The  reference  to  Theroigne's  possible  lovers  has 
been  taken  as  prejudicial  to  the  Minerva-like  attitude 
she  was  supposed  to  have  adopted  since  her  return 
to  Italy.  But  it  seems  natural  enough  that  her  brother, 
not  knowing,  or  not  wishing  to  appear  to  know,  of 
what  political  crime  she  could  be  accused,  should 
imagine  her  disappearance  might  bear  a  personal  inter- 
pretation. 

A  great  deal  of  Theroigne's  charm  lies  in  the  fact 
that  mystery  constantly  surrounds  her  actions.  Ap- 
parently innocent  and  without  reproach,  invariably 
able  to  convince  her  accusers  of  her  own  uprightness 
when  brought  into  personal  contact  with  them,  the 
impartial  judge,  when  far  removed  from  the  bewilder- 
ment engendered  by  her  presence  and  naive  assertions, 
cannot  fail  to  be  assailed  by  many  a  doubt.  She  had 
had  more  than  one  lover  in  her  youth,  then  why  this 
sudden  return  to  virtue  unless,  as  has  been  suggested, 
her  health  had  been  destroyed  by  her  mode  of  living  ? 
She  had  taken  an  active  and  earnest  part  in  the 


206  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

revolutionary  movement  in  Paris,  then  why  this  ab- 
solute collapse  of  enthusiasm  when  living  in  a  district 
of  the  Low  Countries  where  as  strong  an  undercurrent 
of  revolt  existed  ?  She  had  never  joined  in  any  plot 
for  the  removal  of  the  Queen,  then  why  the  determined 
persecution  by  the  French  Emigres  ?  She  had,  in  short, 
been  but  one  of  a  thousand  with  similar  aims  and  had 
done  nothing  to  justify  her  being  singled  from  the 
crowd  for  vilification,  then  why  the  unceasing  diatribes 
of  the  royalist  press  ?  These  are  problems  it  is  not 
easy  to  answer.  Innocent  or  not,  Theroigne  was  to 
suffer  penalty  for  even  the  appearance  of  guilt. 

Meanwhile  she  was  being  borne  relentlessly  farther 
and  farther  from  her  home  and  from  all  those  she 
loved.  At  Coblenz  her  captors  were  hailed  by  the 
people  as  saviours  of  the  monarchy.  The  news  of 
the  identity  of  the  prisoner  had  spread  like  wildfire  and 
the  emigres  gave  a  special  banquet  to  celebrate  the 
event.  They  drank  to  the  glory  of  France,  and  were 
convinced  that  the  secrets  of  the  revolutionists  were 
now  at  their  mercy.  From  Coblenz  the  way  led 
through  Worms,  where  they  stayed  to  greet  the  Prince 
de  Cond6,  who  had  chosen  this  spot  as  his  retreat. 
Saint-Malon  communicated  the  story  of  the  arrest, 
and  so  awakened  Conde's  curiosity  that  he  desired 
to  see  the  beautiful  captive,  and  approached  her  as 
she  was  seated  in  the  carriage  that  was  to  bear  her  to 
prison.  She  received  him  with  disdain  and  deliber- 
ately turned  her  back  upon  him,  refusing  to  speak 
a  word. 

After  the  carriage  had  left  Worms,  Saint-Malon 
upbraided  her  for  her  want  of  respect  to  a  prince  of 


Flight  and  Capture  207 

the  blood,  and  went  so  far  as  to  accuse  her  of  ill- 
breeding. 

"  Spare  your  words,"  she  cried :  "  I  do  not  need  your 
advice.  I  know  very  well  indeed  to  whom  I  owe 
respect." 

"  You  are  getting  angry,"  said  Saint-Malon. 

<c  Not  at  all.  But  no  true  patriot  can  honestly  greet 
the  Prince  de  Conde,"  she  continued.  "  He  is  one  of 
the  worst  enemies  of  the  nation.  Here,  even,  in  this 
foreign  country,  he  incites  and  foments  intrigues 
against  France.  All  the  world  knows  the  treason  of 
which  the  Prince  is  guilty.  He  is  a  traitor."  And 
then  remembering  that  her  words  might  be  a  menace 
to  her  own  safety,  she  became  suddenly  silent. 

This  did  not  altogether  suit  the  plan  of  her  captors. 
They  wanted  to  strike  while  the  iron  was  hot,  to  force 
some  admission  from  her  which  might  be  a  condemna- 
tion from  her  own  lips.  They  tried  every  means  in 
their  power — threats,  cajoling,  anger,  pleading,  and  even 
love-making  and  flattery.  "  I  cannot  believe,"  said 
Saint-Malon,  "  that  you,  so  pretty,  so  fascinating,  have 
renounced  love  for  ever.  Hear  me,  I  beg  of  you. 
You  must  know  that  I  love  you  tenderly  ;  you  are 
divine.  I  can  no  longer  be  silent.  Give  me  leave 
respectfully  to  kiss  your  little  white  hands,  fresh  as  the 
petals  of  the  clematis." 

He  tried  to  seize  her  hand.  She  withdrew  it 
roughly,  then  he  endeavoured  to  slip  one  arm  about 
her,  and  she,  poor  girl,  unprotected  and  at  the  mercy 
of  a  scoundrel,  struck  at  him  savagely.  Maddened  by 
this  insult,  he  threw  aside  his  mask  and  disclosed  him- 
self in  his  true  colours  of  a  jailer. 


208  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

"  Your  conduct  will  cost  you  dear,  mademoiselle  ; 
you  will  not  soon  forget  me." 

u  And  yours  has  been  such  that  I  could  not  forget 
you  if  I  would,  monsieur.  I  shall  always  think  of  you 
as  a  man  I  despise  and  hate  with  all  my  soul,"  she 
replied  hotly. 

He  gave  her  one  more  chance  of  reflecting,  and 
promised  to  help  her  if  she  would  answer  all  his 
questions  frankly. 

"  1  can  only  reflect  that  you  wish  to  set  a  trap  for 
me,"  she  said,  and  added  nothing  but  the  assurance  of 
her  innocence  and  good  faith. 

The  five  days'  journey  from  Coblenz  to  Freiburg 
was  a  period  of  misery,  both  mental  and  physical,  to 
the  prisoner.  She  arrived  at  the  latter  town  in  a  state 
bordering  on  collapse. 

Freiburg,  in  Breisgau,  was  then  an  important  Austrian 
garrison  town.  The  Commander,  Colonel  Rudler  von 
GreifFenstein,  had  his  hands  full  at  that  time  keeping 
order  in  the  place,  on  account  of  the  number  of  French 
tmigrh  who  took  refuge  there,  and  the  disturbances 
and  conspiracies  consequent  on  their  presence.  Her 
captors  lodged  Theroigne  at  the  Negre  Inn,  and  were 
so  fearful  lest  she  should  escape  them  that  they  asked 
the  commander  to  allow  them  to  have  military  help  in 
guarding  her. 

Freiburg  was  chiefly  of  importance,  as  far  as 
Theroigne  was  concerned,  because  it  was  there  that 
her  escort  was  changed  and  she  was  well-rid  of  the 
importunate  Saint-Malon.  Her  new  guardian,  the 
Baron  de  Landresc,  who  had  received  orders  to  take 
her  to  Kufstein,  was  a  very  different  kind  of  man. 


Flight  and  Capture  109 

He  treated  his  prisoner  with  kindness  and  respect. 
The  Baron  and  Theroigne,  accompanied  by  two  or 
three  officers,  left  Freiburg  on  March  9th  with  the 
ostensible  object  of  journeying  to  Innsbruck  and 
Vienna. 

When  she  heard  that  she  was  to  be  taken  to  the 
Austrian  capital,  Theroigne  could  hardly  contain  her 
excitement.  "  The  Emperor  is  at  Vienna,"  she  cried  ; 
"  I  will  ask  for  an  audience.  I  shall  have  speech  with 
him,  and  he  will  hear  me.  I  can  tell  the  Court  of 
Austria  the  most  astonishing  things." 

As  they  proceeded  towards  Altdorf,  Theroigne  began 
to  show  more  friendliness  towards  the  Baron.  She 
felt  that  he  was  well-disposed  towards  her,  and  began 
to  chatter  freely.  uAs  you  are  aware/'  she  began, 
"  I  have  joined  the  patriots  and  taken  up  the  noble 
cause  of  the  people.  Our  motto  is  Liberty  and 
Equality.  I  am  devoting  all  my  efforts  to  promote 
the  general  welfare.  Even  women  have  their  share 
of  work  to  do,  and  can  help  mightily  in  furthering  the 
progress  of  civilisation.  It  is  only  necessary  that  their 
desire  to  do  so  should  be  strong  enough.  It  ought 
to  be  the  aim  of  every  well-born  individual  to  succour 
the  unfortunate  and  the  oppressed.  In  this  great  work 
there  need  be  no  distinction  made  between  men  and 
women." 

She  denied  utterly  that  the  part  she  had  played  in 
the  Revolution  was  an  active  one.  "  I  refused  to  be 
drawn  into  any  plot  or  cabal,"  she  maintained.  u  This 
fact  has  made  me  wonder  over  and  over  again  how 
I  come  to  be  in  this  position.  I  have  never  committed 
a  crime.  I  am  innocent.  It  is  true  that  I  took  an 


2io  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

interest  in  political  questions,  but  I  did  what  a  hundred 
thousand  other  people  have  done.  Logically  speaking, 
then,  if  I  am  to  be  put  in  prison,  they  too  should 
share  my  fate." 

The  next  stopping-place  was  Innsbruck,  which  was 
usually  a  sleepy  little  town.  But  the  arrival  of  a  fair 
political  prisoner  had  been  reported  in  the  newspapers, 
and  the  inhabitants  one  and  all  turned  out  to  see  her. 
When  the  carriage  and  four  in  which  she  travelled 
rolled  up,  the  market-place  was  crowded,  and  Landresc, 
concerned  for  the  security  of  his  prisoner,  hurried  her 
into  the  inn.  The  Archduchess  Elizabeth,  who  was 
then  at  Innsbruck,  was  vastly  interested  in  Theroigne, 
and  commanded  an  interview.  It  is  not  on  record 
whether  the  daughter  of  the  people  made  one  of 
her  usual  blunt  speeches  against  the  aristocracy  and 
monarchy  on  this  occasion. 

At  Schwaz  Theroigne  was  taken  ill,  and  though  she 
struggled  on  as  far  as  Woergl,  she  declared  at  this 
little  village  that  she  could  travel  no  farther,  and 
demanded  a  particular  kind  of  medicine  to  mitigate 
her  fever.  The  Baron  was  in  a  dilemma.  He  was 
not  convinced  that  her  attack  of  illness  was  genuine. 
He  feared  she  might  be  contemplating  some  plan  of 
escape.  Nor  did  he  think  it  wise  to  give  her  medicine 
of  her  own  prescribing.  How  was  he  to  be  sure  that 
it  did  not  contain  some  deadly  poison  which  would 
rob  the  aristocrats  of  their  prey?  To  make  security 
doubly  sure  he  made  the  apothecary  swear  that 
the  stuff  was  innocuous,  and  even  went  so  far  as 
to  swallow  a  dose  himself  as  a  precaution  against 
treachery. 


Flight  and  Capture  211 

As  soon  as  Theroigne  felt  better  and  was  able  to 
continue  the  journey,  she  expressed  her  earnest  wish 
to  hasten  on  to  Vienna,  convinced  that  there  she 
would  be  allowed  to  resume  her  liberty.  Landresc 
was  faced  with  the  difficult  task  of  telling  her  the 
truth — that  he  had  been  ordered  to  conduct  her  as  far 
as  the  fortress  of  Kufstein,  and  that  there  he  was  to 
leave  her.  At  this  news  Theroigne  was  overcome  by 
despair.  Her  evident  grief  and  distress  softened  the 
Baron's  heart.  Th6roigne  had  the  gift  of  knowing 
how  to  work  on  any  man's  feelings.  She  asked  a  last 
favour  of  him. 

"  You  are  the  only  friend  I  have  left,"  she  pleaded. 
"  Think  how  disconsolate  those  must  be  who  once 
cared  for  me  and  do  not  now  know  where  I  am 
or  what  has  happened  to  me.  My  poor  brother,  who 
loves  me  tenderly " 

"  But  what  can  I  do  ?  "  interrupted  the  Baron. 

c<  Help  me  to  communicate  with  Pierre.  Deliver 
a  letter  to  him.  I  should  feel  gratitude  towards  you 
until  my  dying  day." 

The  Baron  uttered  not  a  word.  To  consent  to 
serve  as  an  intermediary  for  a  State  prisoner,  to  help 
her  to  correspond  with  her  relatives,  would  be  to  defy 
all  regulations,  and  to  lay  himself  open  to  the  gravest 
consequences. 

It  says  something  for  Theroigne's  persuasive  powers 
that  even  here  she  obtained  her  desire.  The  letter 
was  written,  was  sent  off,  and  reached  its  destination 
in  due  course.  It  would  be  indiscreet  to  expect  to 
know  definitely  by  whose  timely  assistance  this  came 
to  pass. 


A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

The  letter  contained  some  account  of  her  arrest : 

"  MY  DEAR  BROTHER,"  she  writes, 

"  Among  the  individuals  who  have  seized  my 
person  there  were  two  French  officers  and  one  im- 
ptriaux.  They'  did  not  show  me  any  special  order. 
1  do  not  know  by  whose  instructions  nor  why  I 
have  been  arrested,  which  is  terrible.  The  two  French- 
men informed  me  verbally,  however,  that  it  was  on 
account  of  the  affairs  of  Brabant,  but  I  saw  that  it 
was  quite  the  contrary,  for  they  never  ceased  to 
question  me  on  the  events  of  the  French  Revolution. 
They  even  employed  a  ruse  and  finesse,  pretending 
to  be  just  and  honest,  with  the  intention  of  drawing 
out  my  confidences.  They  did  not  raise  their  masks 
until  we  reached  Freiburg,  where  they  showed  the 
greatest  enmity  against  the  patriots  and  the  greatest 
interest  in  finding  me  guilty." 

She  begged  her  brother  to  go  to  Vienna  at  once, 
and  to  ask  permission  from  the  Emperor  for  her  to 
be  taken  there  so  that  he  might  hear  her  own  version 
of  the  affair.  "  I  would  give  everything  that  I  have," 
she  declared,  "  for  the  chance  of  speaking  to  the 
Emperor,  for  I  feel  certain  that  he  did  not  give  orders 
for  my  arrest."  The  thought  of  sleeping  in  a  prison 
terrified  her,  she  said,  and  she  complained  of  ill-health, 
fearing  she  knew  not  what  evil  consequences  if  she 
were  not  speedily  released. 

But  Pierre-Joseph  did  not  dream  of  going  to  Vienna. 
He  dreaded  lest  he  should  be  implicated  in  his  sister's 
alleged  plots.  Instead,  he  appealed  once  more  to 
Perregaux,  telling  him  that  he  had  received  a  letter 


THEROIGNE   BE    MERICOURT. 

From  a  crayon  drawing  by  Danlou  in  the  possession  of  M.  le  Vicomte  de  Reiset 
and  reproduced  by  kind  permission  of  the  owner. 


2I3 


Flight  and  Capture  21$ 

from  his  sister  since  her  disappearance.  In  order  to 
keep  him  informed  of  what  was  going  on,  and  be- 
cause he  wanted  him  to  help  in  freeing  her,  he  sent 
him  her  letter.  "  But  you  know/'  he  writes,  <c  that 
since  the  day  of  her  capture  I  have  followed  up  her 
affairs  keenly  with  my  aunt  at  Liege,  yet  all  our  en- 
deavours have  been  fruitless."  Theroigne's  enemies 
were  not  content  with  seizing  her  person  ;  they  cal- 
umniated her,  he  stated,  in  all  the  public  journals. 
Her  aunt  had  employed  two  lawyers,  who  agreed  that 
a  memoir  should  be  printed  containing  her  justification, 
that  it  should  be  published  in  Paris,  and  that  a 
deputy  of  the  Assembly  should  be  found  who  would 
take  the  trouble  to  write  to  Mercy- Argenteau,  and  to 
send  him  a  copy  of  the  memoir.  Pierre  asked  Perre- 
gaux  to  help  him  with  the  printing  of  this  document, 
which  could  not  be  done  at  Li6ge,  as  it  was  forbidden 
to  print  anything  without  the  permission  of  the 
authorities,  and  it  was  not  possible  for  him  to  present 
himself  for  the  purpose  of  gaining  permission. 

"  I     have    learnt,"    continues    Theroigne's    brother, 
"  that  M.  FAbbe  Sieyes  has  spoken  several  times  very 

kindly   of  my    sister   to    M.    .     This    man   was 

deputy  for  Liege  at  Paris  during  the  Revolution.  I 
am  sure  that  if  we  explained  things  as  they  are  to 
him  he  would  gladly  take  it  upon  himself  to  write 
to  Brussels."  He  then  begged  Perregaux  to  ask  his 
brother  to  see  about  this  matter,  and  to  speak  to  the 
deputy,  who  had  known  Theroigne  well,  because  it 
was  unlikely  that  he  would  think  harshly  of  the  faults 
she  had  committed  in  France,  which,  moreover,  were 
already  relegated  to  oblivion  because  the  National 
13 


2i 6  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Assembly  had  issued  a  decree  cancelling  all  the  warrants 
of  arrest. 

c<  I  am  examining  the  papers,"  concludes  Pierre- 
Joseph,  "  but  you  will  see  more  clearly  than  I  how 
to  act  for  the  best.  I  shall  owe  you  a  debt  of  eternal 
gratitude,  and  would  gladly  pay  it  by  shedding  my 
blood  for  you." 

From  this  letter  it  is  apparent  that  Theroigne's 
brother  was  not  entirely  convinced  of  her  innocence. 
Possibly  he  too  was  mystified  by  the  extraordinary 
inconsistencies  in  her  character. 

Whilst  these  negotiations  were  being  undertaken 
on  her  behalf  Th6roigne  was  passing  through  new 
and  unpleasant  experiences. 


CHAPTER   VI 

KUFSTEIN 

ON  the  frontiers  of  the  Tyrol  and  Bavaria  stands 
an  imposing  fortress,  with  dungeons  and  battle- 
ments, dominating  the  surrounding  country.  Art, 
brought  to  bear  upon  remarkable  natural  qualifications, 
rendered  this  place  practically  impregnable. 

It  was  March  lyth,  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning, 
when  Theroigne  and  her  escort  arrived  before  the 
forbidding  walls  of  Kufstein.  She  was  overwhelmed 
by  dread  at  the  thought  of  the  fate  in  store  for  her. 
"  Unfortunate  being  that  I  am,"  she  cried.  "  I  have 
been  condemned — innocent,  I  swear  it — to  a  convict's 
cell,  to  unheard-of  tribulations  and  sufferings.  What 
you  have  been  told  of  me,  monsieur,  is  an  infamous 
calumny.  Help  me  to  escape  from  the  doom  that 
awaits  me." 

Landresc,  deeply  moved  by  her  piteous  plight, 
turned  away  his  head. 

She  sobbed,  she  gave  way  to  hysterical  shrieks,  she 
declared  it  would  be  better  to  die  at  once  than  to 
endure  captivity.  Nothing  could  calm  her. 

Presently  the  governor  of  the  prison,  Captain 
Andre  Schoeniger,  appeared  upon  the  scene.  He  was 

accustomed   to    these  outbreaks  of  despair.      All  the 

217 


2i8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

prisoners    enacted    the    same    tragedy   in    a   lesser    or 
greater  degree.     All  declared  themselves  martyrs. 

Schceniger  had  been  well  prepared  for  the  kind 
of  prisoner  he  had  to  expect.  He  had  been  instructed 
to  have  her  strictly  guarded,  but  she  was  to  be  treated 
humanely.  There  was  to  be  no  brutality. 

The  Captain  himself  conducted  u  Madame  Theo- 
bald "  to  her  cell.  This  was  an  unusual  honour, 
rarely  accorded  to  any  prisoner,  except  those  of 
peculiar  distinction. 

The  approach  to  the  upper  regions  of  the  fortress 
was  not  one  to  inspire  hope  of  freedom  in  the  captive's 
breast.  Hewn  through  huge  and  unscalable  rocks, 
the  way  to  the  prison  wound  through  a  narrow  and 
dark  subterranean  passage,  up  countless  flights  of 
stairs,  climbing  ever  higher  and  higher  into  what 
was  a  well-nigh  impenetrable  fastness.  After  mounting 
more  than  two  hundred  steps  a  little  court  was 
reached,  where  there  was  a  revolving  bridge  and 
massive  doors  heavily  barred  with  iron.  Once  beyond 
that,  and  the  prisoner  said  good-bye  to  the  outer 
world — for  who  knows  how  long  ?  Then  more 
mounting  upward,  in  a  tower  this  time,  the  way 
becoming  more  narrow  and  more  gloomy,  and  the 
air  more  damp.  At  last  a  second  door  as  black  and 
solid  as  the  first  was  reached.  It  led  into  the  prison 
proper.  Fainting  and  breathless  the  prisoner  stood 
still,  unable  to  move  another  step.  Schoeniger,  taking 
her  by  the  arm,  urged  her  on.  No  prisoner  was 
allowed  to  loiter  there.  There  was  a  second  tower 
to  mount,  more  of  the  huge  stone  steps  built  into 
walls  so  thick  that  no  voice  could  echo  there  ;  even 


Kufstcin  219 

the  breath  seemed   stifled.     Th£roigne   felt  she   knew 
what  burial  alive  would  mean. 

The  passage  widened  out  into  a  vault,  and  that 
in  turn  into  a  courtyard,  open  to  the  sky  at  last. 
Round  about  were  high  walls  containing  many 
windows,  strongly  barred.  And  here  every  sign  of 
the  way  they  had  come  was  lost.  The  four  sides 
of  the  court  appeared  alike  in  every  particular. 
Which  of  the  closed  apertures  was  the  one  that  led 
out  of  this  horrible  trap  ?  It  was  impossible  to 
remember.  How  could  any  prisoner  dwell  for  an 
instant  on  the  thought  of  escape  through  those 
bewildering  labyrinths  of  brick  and  rock,  guarded 
as  they  were  at  regular  intervals  by  armed  sentries. 
Far  better  death  than  captivity  in  such  a  place  ! 

The  cell  into  which  Th£roigne  was  led  was  not 
terrible.  It  had  two  windows,  one  looking  into  the 
courtyard,  the  other  into  the  surrounding  mountains. 
The  furniture  was  of  white  wood,  and  of  the  plainest 
description.  It  communicated  with  a  room  occupied 
by  the  sentry.  No  one  could  enter  her  apartment 
without  being  challenged  by  the  guard. 

The  captain  ordered  an  inventory  to  be  taken  of 
the  prisoner's  possessions.  They  were  not  numerous. 
A  hat,  two  gowns,  a  silk  kerchief,  a  brown  cloak 
trimmed  with  fur,  a  muff,  two  pairs  of  shoes,  four 
undergarments,  five  handkerchiefs,  ten  pairs  of  silk 
stockings,  and  a  belt  comprised  the  whole  of  her 
wardrobe.  There  was  nothing  like  a  riding-habit, 
and  no  weapons. 

The  governor  thought  she  was  but  ill  provided  for. 
Just  then  his  eye  fell  upon  some  books. 


220  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

"  What  have  we  here  ?  "  he  cried. 

The  soldier  read  out  the  titles.     Works  of  Seneca 
complete  works  of  de  Mably,  and  Plato's  Dialogues. 

"She  must  be  a  blue-stocking,"  said  the  governor, 
laughing  ;  but  his  manner  implied  a  new  accession  of 
respect. 

There  was  nothing  else  to  account  for  except  a  few 
silver  spoons,  some  silver  buttons,  and  other  gewgaws. 
These  were  placed  in  a  casket  and  locked  away.  The 
search  ended,  the  governor  retired,  and  the  prisoner 
was  left  alone.  She  heard  the  heavy  door  close  and 
the  bolts  shot. 

She  fell  on  her  knees  and  called  for  mercy.  She 
wrung  her  hands,  tears  streaming  down  her  cheeks. 

There  was  no  answer  to  her  cry. 

A  week  passed  in  a  kind  of  mental  stupor  ;  she 
sobbed,  she  raged,  and  then,  worn  out,  she  slept.  At 
regular  intervals  meals  were  brought  to  her.  She  was 
allowed  to  choose  her  own  food.  Whenever  the 
governor  came  into  the  room,  which  was  fairly  often, 
she  asked  him  about  her  trial.  "  When  will  it  begin  ? " 
was  her  invariable  question. 

"  I  know  nothing."     His  reply  never  altered. 

At  last  her  longing  for  an  occupation  became  so 
extreme  that  she  plucked  up  courage  and  begged 
Schoeniger  to  allow  her  to  have  a  piano.  "  Music 
passes  the  time  pleasantly,"  she  said  in  her  wheedling 
manner. 

The  governor  was  dumbfounded  at  such  an  audacious 
request. 

u  I  beg  of  you  to  obtain  for  me  this  harmless  amuse- 


Kufstein  221 

ment,"  she  urged,  wearing  the  air  of  innocence  and 
childlike  joyousness  which  never  failed  to  fascinate. 

"  Madame,"  he  replied,  endeavouring  to  speak 
sternly,  u  it  is  quite  out  of  my  power  to  procure 
you  this  privilege." 

"  Oh  !  "  Her  disappointment  was  evident  from  her 
voice. 

<c  But,  you  might " 

"  What  ?  "  She  knew  there  was  more  to  come. 
She  was  all  eagerness. 

ct  Well,  write  to  Vienna  to  the  Conseil  de  Guerre. 

It  may  be " 

She  asked  him  sweetly  whether  he  could  not  do  her 
the  favour  of  writing  himself.  She  felt  sure  her 
request  would  have  more  weight  coming  from  him. 
He  had  no  power  to  refuse  so  simple  a  plea.  As  he 
was  leaving  the  room  she  laid  one  hand  on  his  arm. 

"  Monsieur,'*  she  said,  u  just  one  thing  more.  Could 
you  trace  for  me  the  three  receipts  which  were  taken 
from  me  at  the  time  of  my  arrest.  I  asked  them  to 
send  them  to  my  brother  Pierre.  If  they  have  gone 
astray  the  loss  would  be  a  serious  one.  The  amount 
is  some  two  thousand  three  hundred  and  eighty-four 
livres." 

To  this  the  amenable  "governor  also"  agreed.  He 
was  treating  the  prisoner  with  enormous  consideration. 
He  sent  for  all  the  papers  which  had  been  seized  at 
La  Boverie. 

For  a  fortnight  Theroigne  was  all  impatience.  Then 
the  use  of  a  piano  was  accorded  her.  She  was  over- 
joyed, and  practised  her  singing  every  day.  But  soon 
the  whole  of  her  repertory  was  exhausted.  It  was 


222  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

impossible  to  obtain  any  new  music.  When  her 
memory  failed  her  she  attempted  to  improvise,  but  she 
did  not  care  for  her  own  compositions  and  soon 
exhausted  her  resources.  Then  she  began  to  complain 
anew  of  the  weariness  of  incarceration. 

Had  she  but  been  able  to  compare  her  lot  with  that 
to  be  endured  throughout  the  Terror  by  the  aristocrats 
in  the  French  prisons,  how  happy  she  might  have 
thought  herself!  She  had  light  and  air,  good  food 
and  repose,  her  jailers  were  kind  in  the  main,  and 
her  case  was  by  no  means  hopeless,  whilst  they  had 
none  of  these  consolations  and  many  unspeakable 
hardships.  What  were  her  sufferings  when  regarded 
in  the  light  of  the  tortures  and  agony  they  were  to 
undergo  ?  Penned  by  the  score  into  tiny  evil-smelling 
cells,  into  which  the  light  of  day  hardly  penetrated,  fed 
on  bad  bread,  putrifying  meat,  adulterated  wine,  and 
rotten  vegetables,  subjected  to  the  vilest  insults,  coarse 
jests,  and  even  physical  violence,  unable  to  utter  a 
complaint  lest  a  murmur  should  produce  more  terrible 
punishment  still,  they  waited  with  smiling  faces  and 
brave  mien  to  hear  the  creak  of  the  tumbril  and  the 
click  of  the  guillotine. 

But  Theroigne  knew  nothing  of  these  horrors,  and 
felt  her  own  sufferings  well-nigh  unendurable  because 
her  imagination  called  up  nothing  worse.  Confinement 
in  itself  meant  death  to  her. 

The  governor,  in  order  to  dispel  the  stupor  of 
misery  into  which  she  had  fallen,  told  her  that  the 
examining  magistrate,  M.  Francois  Le  Blanc,  would 
arrive  before  long  from  his  home  in  Constance,  and 
that  then  the  inquiry  into  her  case  would  take  place. 


Kuf stein  223 

This  news  threw  her  into  a  state  of  great  excitement. 
"  When  will  he  come  ?  To-morrow — the  day  after?  " 
she  asked  eagerly. 

But  no  exact  information  was  vouchsafed  her. 

Spring  was  coming,  and  even  the  stern  discipline  of 
prison  life  seemed  to  relax  somewhat  under  the  benign 
influence  of  the  gentler  mood  of  the  year.  Theroigne 
was  permitted  to  walk  in  an  enclosed  court,  where  the 
trees  were  in  bud,  and  she  could  hear  the  singing  of 
birds. 

The  governor  now  showed  her  every  care.  He 
realised  that  she  was  taking  her  imprisonment  too 
much  to  heart.  Her  health  was  breaking.  She  was 
troubled  by  hallucinations,  torturing  visions  which 
unnerved  her,  and  at  night  she  suffered  from  ghastly 
dreams  which  left  her  sleepless.  She  sighed  for  her 
freedom,  for  her  own  country,  for  those  she  loved. 
There  was  no  human  being  near  her  in  whom  she 
could  confide.  She  was  falling  into  a  rapid  decline. 
As  the  days  passed  Captain  Schoeniger  dreaded  that  he 
might  lose  his  prisoner  by  death. 

On  May  28th  Le  Blanc  arrived.  He  asked  for 
the  prisoner's  papers.  He  had  already  been  assured 
that  they  contained  nothing  compromising.  He  had 
received  his  instructions  from  Prince  Kaunitz.  They 
were  definite  and,  at  the  same  time,  lenient.  Le 
Blanc's  aim  was  to  arrive  if  possible  at  the  simple 
truth  rather  than  to  attempt  to  force  a  confession 
of  guilt. 

"  However  probable  it  appears  that  the  prisoner  has 
committed  the  crime  of  high  treason,'*  ran  his  in- 
structions, "  it  is  impossible  to  have  proof  of  it  unless 


224  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

she  furnishes  it  herself  by  her  own  confession.  It 
is  necessary,  therefore,  to  ask  her  for  a  statement  of 
the  principal  circumstances  and  conditions  of  her  life 
in  France  as  well  as  outside  this  country.  It  is 
indispensable  to  ascertain  whether  at  any  time  in  her 
life  she  played  a  public  part,  and  if  so,  where,  when, 
and  how.  Especially  should  it  be  made  clear  what 
part  she  took  in  the  revolt  of  the  women  on 
October  6th,  1789. 

"  The  commissioner  is  authorised  to  say  that  he 
is  not  reflecting  the  views  of  the  Emperor  in  making 
her  feel  the  rigour  of  the  law.  A  free  and  sincere 
confession  would  be  preferred.  She  must  show  her- 
self worthy  of  the  monarch's  clemency.  Moreover, 
the  result  of  the  inquiry  will  depend  essentially  on 
the  agreement  of  her  confession  and  depositions  with 
the  knowledge  already  obtained  concerning  the  most 
salient  points  of  her  conduct. 

"  Her  fanatic  enthusiasm  for  everything  connected 
with  the  idea  of  democracy  is  well  known.  The 
prisoner  should  therefore  be  warned  that  the  Court 
has  in  its  hands  several  infallible  means  of  recognising 
the  truth  of  the  answers  she  will  make  to  the  questions 
put  to  her.  The  least  reticence,  a  single  lie  in  her 
depositions,  will  suffice  to  class  her  in  the  category 
of  persons  suspected,  dangerous,  incorrigible,  and  who 
ought  to  be  kept  away  from  all  chance  of  doing  harm. 

"  In  any  case,  all  hope  that  she  will  ever  see  her 
country  again  must  be  destroyed.  If,  on  the  one 
hand,  this  causes  her  affliction,  on  the  other  she  will 
feel  more  free  to  speak  without  fear  and  to  adhere 
strictly  to  the  truth. 


Kuf stein  225 

"  Since,  having  nothing  more  to  fear  from  the  resent- 
ment of  people  who  might  be  compromised  by  her 
admissions,  and  having  no  further  interest  in  pro- 
pitiating those  from  whom  she  might  expect  ulterior 
advantages,  she  will  keep  back  nothing  of  what  she 
knows. 

"  Evidently  she  has  had  relations  with  important 
people.  Had  she  really  the  political  influence  with 
which  opinion  has  endowed  her?  In  case  this  is 
answered  in  the  affirmative,  who  are  her  accomplices, 
and  what  are  their  names  ?  Why  did  she  leave  Paris 
to  install  herself  near  Liege?  What  does  she  know 
of  the  organisation  of  the  Jacobins  Club  ?  In  what 
manner  does  she  speak  concerning  the  royal  family 
of  France  ?  " 

These  are  leading  questions.  Answered  fully  they 
would  have  left  but  little  of  The'roigne's  hopes,  aims, 
and  intentions  to  the  imagination. 

On  all  other  points  Le  Blanc  was  allowed  latitude. 
It  was  his  wish  to  inspire  the  prisoner  with  confidence. 

At  their  first  interview  Th6roigne  promised  to  tell 
the  truth,  the  whole  truth,  and  nothing  but  the 
truth. 

Her  interrogator  commended  this  laudable  decision. 
He  assured  her  that  the  Austrian  Government  did  not 
mean  to  punish  her  for  any  political  crimes  of  which 
she  might  have  been  guilty  in  France. 

"They  have  deceived  the  Emperor,"  she  replied 
excitedly.  "By  means  of  insidious  reports,  some 
persons  have  clearly  influenced  the  prince  by  imputing 
to  me  certain  views  or  actions,  and  this  has  been  the 
cause  of  my  detention  But  they  will  have  to  render 


226  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

me  justice.  They  will  realise  that  I  am  but  a  simple 
woman,  charmed  with  the  idea  of  liberty  and  the 
welfare  of  the  people.  In  that  I  cannot  be  held  to 
be  guilty.  On  this  account,  and  because  you  have 
said  yourself  that  the  Austrian  Government  is  quite 
indifferent  to  my  past  doings  in  France,  I  hope  for 
my  release.  Begin  to  question  me  as  soon  as  you  like. 
I  am  ready." 

Le  Blanc  told  her  that  a  few  days  would  be  given 
her  for  calm  meditation,  in  order  that  she  might  go 
through  the  facts  she  had  to  tell  carefully,  and  have 
them  clear  and  exact  in  her  own  mind.  This  did  not 
altogether  please  the  prisoner.  She  had  had  so  much 
time  for  calm  meditation  already  that  solitude  had 
driven  her  almost  crazy.  Nor  did  the  commissioner's 
next  remark  please  her  much  better.  He  told  her 
he  had  to  wait  for  the  clerk  who  was  to  draw  up 
the  inquiry  in  writing. 

"  Is  not  that  clerk  one  of  the  two  Frenchmen  who 
captured  me  and  took  me  to  Freiburg  ?  "  she  inquired 
suddenly. 

Le  Blanc  was  astounded  by  her  perspicacity. 

"  I  know  nothing,"  he  answered  evasively.  u  Surely, 
mademoiselle,  you  must  be  mistaken  in  thinking  that 
your  captors  were  Frenchmen.  They  were  Dutch." 

"  Dutch  ?  "  she  repeated.  "  Don't  tell  me  they  were 
Dutch.  You  have  been  ill  informed,  monsieur,  or 
some  one  has  been  trying  to  deceive  you,  or,  perhaps, 
you  are  trying  to  dupe  me.  I  maintain  against  every- 
thing said  to  the  contrary  that  my  captors  were  officers 
and  French  aristocrats.  I  recognised  them  not  only 
by  the  details  of  their  military  dress,  but  also  by 


Kuf  stein  227 

their  caustic,  insidious,  and  hateful  manners — in  short, 
by  their  discourteous  treatment  of  me,  and  by  their 
speech."  And  then  she  added  angrily :  "  Moreover, 
monsieur,  if  one  of  those  two  Frenchmen  comes  here 
to  perform  the  services  of  a  clerk,  I  will  not  answer 
so  much  as  a  single  syllable.  I  would  die  rather  than 
be  subjected  to  a  process  marked  by  such  partiality. 
Having  been  born  in  the  Low  Countries,  my  sovereign 
can  only  be  of  the  House  of  Hapsburg.  And  there- 
fore t  have  the  right  to  be  tried  by  no  one  but  the 
Emperor's  officials." 

Le  Blanc  was  surprised  to  learn  that  she  had  not 
been  born  in  France. 

She  assured  him  that  she  was  Austrian. 

"  I  will  never  consent  to  be  judged  by  Frenchmen," 
she  repeated  more  firmly  than  before,  "  and  most 
certainly  not  by  one  of  those  who  seized  me  at  La 
Boverie.  Take  care  that  I  am  never  brought  face  to 
face  with  either  of  the  rascals.  They  have  reason 
to  know  already  that  they  cannot  force  me  to  speak." 
She  had  in  mind  the  intolerable  degradation  of  the 
journey  from  Coblenz  to  Freiburg. 

Le  Blanc  was  stupefied  by  her  proud  and  obstinate 
bearing.  He  could  never  have  believed  that  any  one 
as  much  worn  by  illness  as  the  prisoner  could  have 
shown  such  strength  of  will.  He  realised  that  she 
was  not  an  ordinary  woman.  There  was  nothing 
vulgar  about  her  manners  ;  no  bold  gestures,  and 
no  coarse  tones.  She  had  a  large  amount  of  personal 
magnetism,  a  powerful  charm  in  which  energy  and 
grace  made  a  strange  contrast.  Even  the  way  she 
poured  vituperation  on  the  head  of  her  captors,  calling 


228  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

them  vile,  contemptible,  wanting  in  tact,  in  education, 
even  in  humanity,  had  something  of  the  sublime  in  it. 
She  was  the  image  of  assaulted  virtue  pointing  the 
finger  of  scorn  at  vice.  It  was  Theroigne's  gift  to 
put  others  in  the  wrong  and  keep  her  own  position 
unassailable. 

The  story  of  her  early  youth  and  upbringing,  and 
of  her  doings  in  Paris  before  the  close  of  1789,  was 
told  with  a  simplicity  that  was  wonderfully  clever. 

Her  answers  were  put  in  writing,  and  she  signed 
a  document  to  the  effect  that  the  questions  had  been 
put  to  her  by  the  investigating  magistrate  and  were 
recognised  by  her  as  being  those  of  His  Majesty  the 
Emperor  and  King,  and  that  the  responses  were  in 
substance  those  she  had  made. 

After  she  had  been  sworn  the  examination  began 
in  all  seriousness  on  May  Jist,  and  went  on  for  some 
weeks,  broken  only  by  delays  occasioned  by  the  illness 
of  the  prisoner  and  the  arrival  of  La  Valette  at  Kufstein 
with  his  indictment  against  Theroigne,  which  included 
some  122  articles,  and  was  entitled,  "  Dires  et  Aveux 
de  Demoiselle  Theroigne."  Le  Blanc  exercised  his 
authority  in  refusing  to  allow  La  Valette  to  be  present 
at  his  interviews  with  the  prisoner. 

In  the  course  of  the  inquiry  it  was  discovered  that 
Theroigne  had  communicated  with  her  brother  since 
she  had  been  taken  captive.  She  refused  to  disclose 
the  means  by  which  she  had  dispatched  her  letter. 

"  You  are  trying  to  shield  your  accomplice,"  said 
Le  Blanc  ;  "  is  not  that  so  ?  " 

Theroigne  grew  red  and  turned  away  her  eyes. 
She  admitted  that  this  was  true. 


Kuf  stein  229 

"Be  frank  and  fear  nothing/'  said  the  examining 
magistrate.  "  Only  tell  me  the  truth." 

She  remained  immovable  as  a  statue.  Her  face  had 
grown  pale. 

"  I  only  desire  to  know  the  name  of  your  accomplice. 
He  shall  not  be  punished." 

Still  Theroigne  uttered  not  a  word. 

"  Mademoiselle,  answer  me,"  continued  Le  Blanc. 

"  Monsieur,  I  must  not  speak.     Have  pity  on  me." 

"  I  give  you  my  word  of  honour,  no  harm  shall 
come  to  him." 

"  Will  you  give  me  a  promise  in  writing  ? "  asked 
the  prisoner  glibly. 

Pained  as  he  was  by  this  evidence  of  her  mistrust, 
Le  Blanc  agreed.  He  inquired  carefully  concerning 
the  contents  of  the  letter.  Theroigne  could  not  re- 
member exactly  what  she  had  written.  She  was  ac- 
cused of  using  the  expression  "  I  beg  you  to  address 
yourself  to  the  National  Assembly  in  order  that  it 
may  force  the  King  to  claim  my  freedom  as  a  French- 
woman ? " 

"  If  I  used  such  a  phrase,"  responded  Theroigne, 
c<  it  was  very  stupid  of  me,  because  I  am  not  a 
Frenchwoman.  And  if  I  wrote  the  words  '  force  the 
King'  I  employed  an  improper  term.  The  King  of 
France  cannot  be  forced.  He  can  only  be  requested 
to  put  his  laws  into  execution.  As  for  addressing 
myself  to  the  National  Assembly,  which  represents 
the  sovereign,  to  whom  in  a  free  country  the  humblest 
individual  can  present  a  petition,  I  perhaps  was  within 
my  rights  in  suggesting  this.  But  I  did  not  do  it 
in  spite  of  the  right  I  had,  which  I  can  prove.  I 


230  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

was  kidnapped  by  French  aristocrats  who  did  not 
show  me  the  Emperor's  warrant.  Therefore  it  is 
not  surprising  that  I  should  believe  they  were  acting 
on  behalf  of  their  own  sovereign." 

She  was  told  that  her  arrest  had  been  ordered  at 
Brussels  by  Mercy-Argenteau. 

"These  same  aristocrats/'  she  added,  unmoved  by 
this  information,  "  never  ceased  to  insult  me  and  to 
ridicule  the  officers  of  the  French  Army.  I  know 
nothing  of  the  political  aspect  of  my  arrest.  But, 
without  a  doubt,  from  whichever  point  of  view  it  is 
considered,  it  was  most  certainly  a  malicious,  base,  and 
cruel  trick.  The  intriguing  underlings  who  conceived 
the  sublime  plan  of  arresting  me  will  not  remain 
triumphant.  The  Prince  de  Kaunitz,  whose  wisdom 
and  supreme  worth  are  known  throughout  Europe, 
and,  above  all,  the  Emperor,  who  has  already  made 
his  reign  illustrious  by  various  deeds  of  justice  and 
humanity,  will  recognise  the  fact  that  they  have  been 
deceived.  Therefore  I  remain  tranquil." 

This  speech  throws  a  fresh  light  on  Th£roigne's 
intuition  and  her  persuasive  gifts.  She  was  not  stupid, 
la  petite  Theroigne  ;  and  being  assured  once  more  that 
no  harm  should  come  to  her  accomplice  in  the  delivery 
of  a  letter  to  her  brother,  she  gaily  made  a  descrip- 
tion of  an  individual  easily  recognisable  as  the  amiable 
but  unfortunate  Baron  de  Landresc. 

She  was  permitted  to  send  another  letter  to  her 
brother  at  Liege.  It  was  dated  June  26th,  1791. 

"  I  cannot  express  to  you,"  she  writes,  "  the  regrets 
and  grief  which  I  have  suffered  from  being  deprived 
of  your  company  for  so  long.  You  will  have  ex- 


Kuf stein  233 

perienced  the  same  feelings.  I  have  often  imagined 
your  sorrow  and  anxiety,  and  this  has  contributed  no 
little  in  aggravating  my  sadness  and  exaggerating  the 
misfortune  of  my  captivity.  Nevertheless  I  must 
render  justice  to  the  manner  in  which  I  am  treated  ; 
they  take  every  possible  care  of  me,  but,  in  spite  of 
that,  my  brother,  it  is  always  very  hard  to  be  deprived 
of  liberty  when  one  does  not  deserve  it.  I  confess  to 
you  that  I  should  prefer  death  to  being  deprived  much 
longer  of  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you,  my  family,  and 
my  friends.  However,  you  must  reassure  yourself, 
my  brother,  and  reassure  those  who  are  interesting 
themselves  on  my  account  in  this  unfortunate  affair  ; 
for  I  have  reason  to  hope  much  from  the  enlightened 
justice  of  his  Imperial  Majesty,  who  will  free  me  as 
soon  as  he  knows  the  truth.  I  hope  to  see  you  again 
before  two  months  have  passed.  Imagine  how  much 
pleasure  it  will  give  me,  after  having  had  so  much 
grief!  Please  express  my  thanks  to  those  who  have 
interested  themselves  on  my  behalf,  and  have  taken 
steps  to  have  me  released.  Give  my  kind  remem- 
brances to  all  my  friends  ;  say  that  I  hope  to  have 
permission  to  write  to  them  soon,  and  that  I  shall  see 
them  again  before  long — at  least,  they  tell  me  I  may 
hope  that  this  will  be  so,  and,  if  they  do  me  justice, 
this  hope  will  be  realised.  I  have  not  the  slightest 
doubt  of  that. 

"  I  do  not  know  in  the  least  how  our  affairs  stand, 
my  brother  :  whether  you  are  still  boarding  with 
Francois  Person  ;  whether  you  have  enough  money 
to  pay  for  your  lodgings  ;  whether  you  have  had  a 
coat  made,  for  you  were  in  need  of  one  before  I  was 
H 


234  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

taken  prisoner  ;  whether  you  have  paid  what  I  owe 
at  La  Boverie  and  at  Xhoris  ;  and  whether  you  have 
received  three  acknowledgments  of  loans  from  the 
Mont  de  Piete  in  Paris,  which  I  gave  to  those  who 
escorted  me  to  prison  in  order  that  they  might  be 
remitted  to  you." 

One  of  these  loans  had  already  lapsed  at  the  time 
of  her  arrest,  but  she  hoped  the  others  might  be 
redeemed.  She  repeated  herself  in  her  anxiety  to  hear 
how  her  brothers  were  faring  pecuniarily,  and  to  be 
assured  that  they  wanted  for  nothing.  Then  she  went 
on  to  complain  of  her  health,  which  she  hoped  would 
soon  improve,  and  looked  forward  to  the  time  when 
they  should  all  live  together  as  they  had  planned, 
"misfortune  having  ceased  to  dog  their  footsteps." 
She  recommended  her  brother  to  study  diligently,  to 
take  lessons  from  the  same  masters  she  had  had  before 
her  arrest,  and  to  send  her  as  much  news  as  possible. 

Her  correspondence  was,  without  doubt,  intended 
for  the  eye  of  her  jailers,  who  supervised  all  her 
letters.  They  struck  a  very  domestic  note.  The 
most  interesting  of  them,  perhaps,  and  the  one  which 
throws  most  light  on  her  tastes  and  habits,  was  written 
on  July  29th,  1791. 

"  My  dear  brother,"  she  began,  "  I  will  say  no 
more  of  the  impatience  I  have  to  see  you  again,  for 
your  own  feelings  will  give  you  an  idea  of  it.  I  am 
quite  as  anxious  on  your  behalf  as  you  can  be  on  mine. 
What  have  you  been  doing  ?  Where  have  you  been 
all  these  six  months  that  I  have  been  in  prison  ?  Are 
you  continuing  your  studies,  or  have  you  had  the 
misfortune,  as  a  counter-blow  to  mine,  to  lose  all 


Kuf  stein  235 

this  time  owing  to  want  of  money  or  credit  ?  I  am 
dying  to  hear  your  news.  Where  is  my  little  brother  ? 
Is  he  still  at  Xhoris,  and  is  he  studying  ?  Tell  him 
to  write  to  me.  I  keep  feeling  afraid  that  either  of 
you  should  be  wanting  something,  although  you  ought 
to  have  received  the  three  hundred  livres  which  I 
was  expecting  when  they  achieved  the  masterpiece  of 
arresting  me."  And  then  she  goes  on  to  deplore  their 
troubles,  trusts  there  is  money  enough,  and  asks 
once  more  about  the  acknowledgments  for  her  jewels. 
There  is  a  great  deal  of  repetition  in  her  letters. 

"  Unfortunately  I  do  not  yet  know  when  I  shall 
be  able  to  see  you  again,  but  I  still  hope  to  have 
justice  done  me.  I  have  been  strictly  forbidden  to 
tell  you  anything  concerning  my  affairs.  I  shall  con- 
tent myself  with  telling  you  that  I  have  been  outside 
the  fortress  walking  with  MM.  the  Magistrate  and  the 
Commandant,  and  that  I  cannot  go  outside  the  prison 
nor  receive  anybody  without  the  permission  of  these 
two  gentlemen,  who  are  very  kind  to  me. 

"  Perhaps  you  have  been  obliged  to  sell  my  piano- 
forte for  very  little,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  it  cost 
me  thirty  louis.  That  would  grieve  me,  because  I 
love  music,  and  I  shall  no  longer  have  the  means  to 
get  another  one  ;  but,  after  all,  it  is  but  a  small  mis- 
fortune. .  .  .  Have  you  looked  after  our  belongings 
at  La  Boverie  ?  I  am  afraid  lest  my  dresses  should  be 
spoilt,  especially  the  woollen  ones,  if  you  have  not 
had  them  put  out  to  air.  Above  all  things,  I  re- 
commend my  books  to  your  care.  Do  not  lend  them 
to  anybody.  Use  them  for  your  instruction,  and 
that  of  our  brother. 


236  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

"  Besides,  you  might  ask  the  farmer's  wife  whether 
I  forgot  a  parcel  when  I  went  off  in  the  night  with 
those  who  arrested  me.  The  parcel  contained  some 
dresses,  books  of  Seneca  and  de  Mably.1  Please  go 
yourself  and  see  whether  it  was  not  left  on  the  table. 
And  be  sure  and  let  me  know  if  you  have  found  it, 
or  if  the  farmer's  wife  found  it,  yes  or  no.  Do  not 
forget  to  go  yourself  and  look  for  the  five  volumes 
of  Seneca's  letters  which  were  in  the  parcel,  and  three 
volumes  of  de  Mably,  and  my  Indian  morning 
gowns." 

And  then  she  proceeds  to  tell  her  brothers  to  study 
day  and  night,  to  arm  themselves  with  noble  pride, 
to  remember  that  virtue  is  the  only  good,  to  write 
to  her  often,  and  to  remember  her  kindly  to  her 
friends. 

Perhaps  Th£roigne's  brothers  were  hardly  worthy 
of  the  love  and  forethought  she  lavished  upon  them. 
The  whole  family  seemed  cursed  with  shiftlessness, 
which  indicated  that  they  came  of  a  bad  stock. 
Theroigne  had  done  her  brothers  but  a  mistaken 
kindness  in  providing  for  their  wants  from  her  own 
purse.  If  her  gains  were  really  ill-gotten,  as  appears 
to  have  been  the  case,  she  did  them  a  very  bad  service 
indeed.  No  sooner  was  her  support  withdrawn  than 
Pierre-Joseph,  thrown  upon  his  own  resources,  which 
were  of  a  most  unconvincing  nature,  was  at  his  wit's 
end  to  discover  any  means  of  livelihood.  He  tried 
to  obtain  money  from  his  sister's  banker,  Perregaux, 

1  According  to  the  inventory  of  Theroigne's  possessions  taken  by  the 
governor  at  Kufstein,  these  books  were  in  the  parcel  of  her  belongings 
there.  It  is  possible  she  was  kept  in  ignorance  of  this. 


Kufstein  237 

from  the  sale  of  his  sister's  jewels,  and  from  a  certain 
Baron     de    Selys,    governor    of    the    principality    of 
Stavelot,  who  had  received  Theroigne  at  his  chateau 
in   a   more   or   less   friendly   spirit   during    her   recent 
stay  in  the  neighbourhood.     It  was  said  that  Theroigne's 
father  had  once  been  the  Baron's  tenant,  and  that  he 
had  known  her  when  she  was  a  little  girl.     He  had 
been    inspired    to    renew    the    acquaintance    partly    by 
curiosity,   partly   by  a   desire   to   find    out    her    views 
and    her   motive    for  leaving    Paris    and    visiting    her 
own   country.     In   a  letter  dated   October   ist,   1791, 
he  wrote  that  he  had  only  invited  her  and  her  brothers 
so  that  he  might  be  kept  informed  of  their  acquaint- 
ances, their  doings,  and  any  plans  they  might  attempt 
to  put  into  execution  c<  in  order  to  be  useful  to  the 
good   cause."     He  took    this   step  at   the  instigation 
of  the  Comte  de   Maillebois,   who  was   the   principal 
agent   of  the    French   emigre   princes.      As  he  learnt 
nothing  which  could  in  any  way  incriminate  Theroigne, 
this  would  appear  to  be  additional  evidence  in  favour 
of  her    entire    aloofness   from    an   active  part  in    the 
insurrection  at  Liege. 

Although  he  had  little  to  complain  of  in  her  political 
attitude,  his  friendship  for  her  was  to  be  the  cause 
of  great  annoyance  in  other  directions,  both  domestic 
and  financial.  The  Baron  de  Selys  had  married  a 
charming  lady  some  twenty  years  his  junior,  and  had 
daughters  of  his  own.  Unaware  of  the  risk  of  in- 
troducing a  woman  of  Theroigne's  character  into  the 
bosom  of  his  family,  or  perhaps  in  spite  of  it,  he  had 
once  or  twice  invited  her  to  dine  at  his  Chateau  de 
Fanson.  During  these  visits  she  had  fulfilled  their. 


238  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

purpose  by  being  emboldened  to  tell  him  some  of 
her  private  affairs.  In  order  to  strengthen  her  pleasant 
relations  with  the  Selys  family  Theroigne  had  asked 
to  be  allowed  to  give  lessons  on  the  harpsichord  to 
his  daughters.  This  privilege  was  refused  her.  More- 
over, it  was  discovered  that  during  some  walks  they 
had  taken  in  company  she  had  given  several  French 
books  to  the  eldest  girl,  who  was  called  Victoire, 
and  to  prevent  any  such  communication  the  parents 
took  Victoire  to  Maestricht.  The  girl,  however, 
found  means  to  receive  news  of  her  friend.  The 
mother  discovered  that  letters  passed  between  them, 
and  this  underhand  traffic  was  put  a  stop  to.  Soon 
afterwards  the  family  returned  to  Li£ge. 

On  the  first  day  of  the  year  1791,  the  Baron  re- 
turning at  midday  to  the  Hotel  de  la  Cour-de-France, 
where  he  was  then  staying  with  his  family,  found  to 
his  surprise  that  Theroigne  was  with  his  wife,  and 
that  she  was  weeping  bitterly.  Victoire  was  also  in 
tears.  Theroigne  had  met  them  as  they  were  coming 
from  mass,  and  followed  them  to  the  hotel.  She  had 
begged  anew  to  be  allowed  to  give  the  girl  music 
lessons,  but  the  Baroness  refused  as  before.  She  for- 
bade her  to  continue  any  relations  whatever  with 
Victoire,  and  threatened  to  have  her  shut  up  in  a 
convent  if  she  attempted  to  communicate  with  her 
daughter.  At  this  Theroigne  had  screamed  loudly, 
and  had  begged  her  to  show  respect  for  the  rights 
of  man.  Thereupon  Mme  de  Selys  ordered  her 
haughtily  to  take  her  departure.  At  this  moment 
the  Baron  appeared  on  the  scene.  There  was  renewed 
bewailing.  Theroigne,  exasperated,  flung  the  strongest 


Kuf stein  239 

epithet  she  knew  at  him.  She  called  him  a  zealous 
defender  of  monarchs !  The  Baron  put  an  end  to 
this  absurd  situation  by  gently  and  politely  showing 
her  to  the  door.  They  separated  without  bearing 
each  other  any  ill-will,  but  Theroigne,  as  is  not 
unusual  with  women  of  her  type,  insisted  on  having 
the  last  word.  <c  Oh,"  she  said  scornfully,  "  how 
can  a  brave  and  gallant  man  like  you  live  with  a 
woman  so  insupportably  proud  !  " 

Various  causes  were  at  work  to  involve  the  Baron 
in  expense  on  behalf  of  the  woman,  who,  attractive 
as  she  might  be  personally,  had  made  it  definitely 
clear  that  she  was  not  an  individual  worthy  of  great 
confidence,  and  that  all  services  performed  on  her 
account  were  likely  to  be  but  ill  repaid.  A  very 
short  time  elapsed  before  Pierre  Theroigne  began  to 
importune  de  Selys  both  for  himself  and  for  his  sister. 

<c  Very  soon  after  Mile  Theroigne  was  so  rudely 
captured  near  Li£ge,"  wrote  the  Baron  on  March  6th, 
1792,  "her  brother,  who  often  stayed  with  an  aunt 
half  a  league  from  my  castle,  made  the  acquaintance 
of  a  certain  R.  Labeye,  who  for  many  years  has  super- 
vised the  workmen  on  my  estate.  Through  this 
Labeye,  M.  Theroigne  and  his  uncles  and  aunts 
asked  me  to  try  to  obtain  information  as  to  what 
had  become  of  his  sister.  I  made  some  inquiries, 
and  found  she  had  taken  the  route  to  Breisgau." 

Pierre-Joseph  went  to  the  castle  frequently,  and, 
complaining  of  not  receiving  help  from  Paris,  begged 
de  Selys  to  do  what  he  could  to  assist  him.  In  order 
to  rid  himself  of  these  importunities  the  Baron  sug- 
gested that  the  young  fellow  should  make  a  journey 


240  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

to  Kufstein  himself  in  order  to  obtain  definite  news 
of  his  sister,  and  he  even  bestirred  himself  to  obtain 
a  passport  for  Pierre,  which  described  him  as  a  young 
man  of  good  reputation,  aged  about  twenty-four,  well 
made,  and  above  the  average  height,  with  chestnut- 
coloured  hair.  But  this  proposed  journey  came  to 
nothing,  which  was  perhaps  fortunate,  under  the 
circumstances,  as  Theroigne  was  then  on  the  point 
of  leaving  the  prison  for  Vienna,  and  her  brother 
would  probably  have  arrived  too  late. 

She,  on  her  part,  was  moving  heaven  and  earth  to 
have  the  pawned  jewels  restored  to  her,  and  set  about 
this  task  in  the  most  diplomatic  manner  imaginable. 
She  began  by  thanking  M.  le  Blanc  for  all  his  kind- 
ness to  her  at  Kufstein. 

"  You  have  been  a  benefactor  to  me,"  she  remarked. 
c*  I  feel  convinced  that  you  will  never  abandon  me. 
And  I  do  not  doubt  that  you  will  do  everything 
you  possibly  can  to  obtain  for  me  the  favour  of  an 
audience  with  the  Emperor." 

"  That  will  not  be  altogether  easy,"  replied  Le 
Blanc.  "  You  have  too  high  an  opinion  of  my  influence. 
Don't  delude  yourself  in  that  belief." 

Theroigne  seized  upon  this  occasion  to  express  her 
views  on  humanity  in  general  and  politics  in  par- 
ticular. She  grew  wonderfully  animated,  and  her 
powers  of  fascination  increased  with  her  excitement. 
She  was  well  informed  upon  all  the  questions  of  the 
day.  She  expressed  accurate  ideas  of  right  and  justice, 
and  defended  them  with  all  the  single-mindedness 
of  which  a  woman  led  by  intuition  can  be  capable. 

u  I  have  learnt  to  know  men,"  she  declared  boldly, 


Kuf  stein  241 

"  and  I  esteem  them  but  little,  for  I  have  been 
deceived  over  and  over  again.  You,  too,  must  admit 
that  the  feeling  I  have  against  the  French  noblesse  is 
a  legitimate  aversion.  I  might  be  able  to  pardon 
the  persecutions  and  personal  insults  which  they  have 
showered  upon  me,  but  can  I  ever  forget  that  they 
have  sought  to  ruin  me  and  reduce  me  to  beggary, 
as  well  as  all  those  who  are  dear  to  me  ?  " 

"  What !  what's  that  ? "  asked  Le  Blanc  in  astonish- 
ment. "  Where  do  you  get  that  dreadful  idea  from  ?  " 

"  If  am  not  set  free  speedily  I  shall  lose  the  re- 
mainder of  my  fortune.  Do  you  wish  to  know  more  ? 
Well,  I  will  tell  you.  Here  is  the  receipt  for  a 
diamond  necklace  which  was  left  at  the  Mont  de 
Piete  of  Liege.  The  interest  is  overdue  ;  and  if  I 
remain  a  prisoner,  and  am  unable  to  redeem  the 
pledge,  my  necklace  will  be  sold,  and " 

Her  voice  broke. 

Le  Blanc  inquired  what  sum  was  owing.  She  told 
him  that  the  necklace  was  worth  more  than  six 
thousand  livres,  and  that  two  thousand  were  required 
to  get  it  back. 

"  It  means  a  small  fortune  to  me,"  she  cried,  "  and 
the  loss  of  it  would  be  a  terrible  blow  both  to  me  and 


mine." 


"  That  is  true,"  said  Le  Blanc.  "  You  must  let  me 
have  the  receipt.  I  will  send  it  to  Coblenz.  Metter- 
nich  will  have  the  interest  paid  up  to  date  before  your 
trial  comes  to  an  end.  We  will  save  the  necklace." 

Theroigne  hardly  knew  how  to  express  her  gratitude. 

Le  Blanc  sent  his  report,  and  the  minister  put  the 
matter  in  the  hands  of  the  Baron  de  Selys,  who  was 


242  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

then    living    at    Liege.      Inquiries    were    immediately 
made. 

Meanwhile  Pierre-Joseph  had  told  Labeye  about  the 
necklace,  and  begged  him  to  ask  the  Baron  to  redeem 
it.  Mme  de  Selys,  hearing  of  the  jewels,  obtained  the 
influence  of  some  relative  at  the  Mont  de  Piete  and 
went  to  inspect  them. 

"At  the  close  of  1791  my  wife  saw  the  necklace, 
and  at  the  prayer  of  Sieur  Theroigne  wished  to  redeem 
it,"  wrote  Selys,  in  the  letter  of  March  6th.  "But 
as  Sieur  Theroigne  was  unable  to  produce  the  receipt, 
madame  was  obliged  to  give  security  at  the  Mont 
de  Piete  in  case  the  receipt  was  produced  by  anybody 
else.  I  learnt,  on  returning  from  a  voyage,  that  the 
necklace  had  been  redeemed,  and  was  at  my  house, 
which  did  not  give  me  any  particular  pleasure." 

M.  de  Selys  told  this  story  of  the  necklace  to 
Perregaux,  and  added  that,  in  spite  of  his  displeasure, 
and  somewhat  against  his  will,  he  had  taken  charge  of 
the  receipts  sent  to  Pierre-Joseph,  and  had  redeemed, 
from  the  Mont  de  Piete  at  Paris,  two  ear-rings  and 
a  ring.  He  was  not  rewarded  for  his  trouble.  It 
came  to  his  ears  that  Pierre's  real  reason  for  not  going 
to  the  Tyrol  was  that  he  feared  to  be  arrested  himself 
because  he  had  been  told  that  the  Baron  de  Selys 
was  partly  responsible  for  the  capture  of  his  sister, 
and  was  waiting  to  seize  the  brother  too  before  appro- 
priating Mile  Theroigne's  redeemed  jewels  for  his  own 
uses.  The  Baron  was  naturally  disgusted  when  he 
heard  of  these  absurd  aspersions  on  his  character.  He 
wished  to  rid  himself  as  quickly  as  possible  of  all 
Thdroigne's  relatives,  and,  hoping  to  obtain  her  consent 


Kufstcin  243 

to  sell  the  jewels  for  the  benefit  of  her  brother,  he 
wrote  a  letter  to  her  personally,  and  took  steps  to 
assure  himself  that  it  would  reach  her.  In  it  he  told 
her  that  her  relatives  were  all  well,  and  greatly  desired 
to  see  her  again.  Leonard  Clamend,  her  uncle,  who 
lived  at  Xhoris,  had  lost  his  mother.  Her  youngest 
brother,  Pierrot,  had  left  Xhoris  for  Marcourt.  Pierre- 
Joseph  was  still  at  Liege,  and  told  him  he  was  making 
good  use  of  his  time.  Having  thus  dismissed  the 
trivial  family  gossip,  he  explained  that  he  had  helped 
both  her  brothers  several  times  with  sums  of  money, 
the  last  being  an  amount  of  five  louis  the  very  day 
before  the  one  on  which  he  wrote.  He  had  also 
redeemed  her  jewels  as  she  had  directed,  and  informed 
her  that  her  brother  Pierre  wished  to  sell  them  and 
buy  himself  an  interest  in  some  business,  which,  he 
was  told  by  Pierre,  was  a  plan  of  her  own.  He  asked 
her  to  agree  definitely  to  this  arrangement,  as  her 
brother  was  without  resources,  and  could  get  no 
answer  from  Perregaux  although  he  had  written  more 
than  once. 

Before  this  letter  reached  Kufstein  Th&roigne  was 
on  her  way  to  Vienna,  and  Le  Blanc  himself  replied 
to  it  on  November  2ist,  1791,  informing  the  Baron 
that  she  would  soon  be  free,  and  able  to  answer  his 
questions  in  person. 

This,  to  her,  highly  desirable  state  of  affairs  was 
brought  about  by  Le  Blanc's  conviction  that  the 
prisoner  had  been  arrested  under  a  misapprehension. 

Finding  that  her  account  differed  in  almost  every 
particular  from  that  of  her  chief  accuser,  La  Valette, 
he  decided  to  confront  the  two  of  them,  in  spite  of  her 


244  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

objection  ever  to  be  brought  face  to  face  with  her 
persecutor.  La  Valette  was  introduced  into  the  prison 
under  the  name  of  Legros  on  July  6th,  and  this 
dramatic  interview  was  to  be  the  final  act  of  the 
inquiry  into  the  charges  brought  against  the  prisoner. 

When  Theroigne  recognised  the  Chevalier  who  had 
been  brought  into  her  cell  without  warning,  she  rose 
from  her  bed  like  an  infuriated  tigress.  She  was 
trembling  and  gasping  with  the  strength  of  her 
emotion.  Her  stifled  breathing  and  the  glare  of  anger 
in  her  eyes  showed  plainly  the  hatred  she  bore  this 
adversary.  Le  Blanc,  who  was  present,  began  to  fear 
the  result  of  so  much  excitement  upon  her  already 
enfeebled  health. 

After  repeating  the  substance  of  h  s  accusations, 
La  Valette  said  proudly  :  "  I  persist  in  my  declarations, 
and  maintain  all  my  depositions  to  the  letter." 

<c  And  I  refuse  to  alter  a  single  word  of  what  I  have 
said,"  added  Thdroigne.  Her  voice  rang  out  ;  she 
drew  herself  up,  and  at  that  moment  she  held  herself 
like  a  great  lady,  and  faced  her  accuser  with  a  dignified 
pose  that  was  both  graceful  and  full  of  energy.  Her 
conscience  was  at  rest,  and  she  was  inspired  by  a  know- 
ledge of  her  own  innocence. 

Le  Blanc  saw  that  nothing  was  to  be  gained  by 
prolonging  the  interview.  Influenced,  no  doubt,  by 
her  obvious  honesty,  by  the  straightforwardness  of 
her  replies,  and  no  less,  it  must  be  confessed,  by  the 
personal  magnetism  which  affected  even  better  men 
than  the  inquiring  magistrate,  he  became  convinced, 
little  by  little,  that  she  had  never  made  an  attempt  to 
assassinate  the  Queen  of  France,  and,  as  no  proof 


Kufstein  245 

existed  of  her  having  incited  the  people  of  Brabant 
to  rebellion,  he  could  not  bring  home  to  her  any  worse 
accusation  than  that  of  being  a  misguided  young 
woman. 

At  the  end  of  June  his  sympathies  had  been  deeply 
enlisted  by  her  evident  sufferings  and  ill  health.  He 
sent  for  the  local  doctor,  who  seemed  unable  to  cure 
her.  Then  he  called  in  an  illustrious  physician,  Dr.  de 
M6derer,  who  came  all  the  way  from  Constance,  where 
he  was  enjoying  a  holiday,  at  the  request  of  his  old 
friend  and  colleague. 

M£derer  had  a  world-wide  reputation.  He  arrived 
at  Kufstein  at  the  end  of  July.  He  recognised  at  once 
that  Theroigne's  physical  condition  was  anything  but 
satisfactory,  and  that  her  mind  was  deeply  troubled. 
Continuous  excitement,  unrelieved  suspense,  and  grief 
had  worked  havoc  on  her  constitution,  and  had  re- 
duced her  to  a  state  bordering  on  mental  aberration. 
Something  had  to  be  done  at  once  to  relieve  the 
strain  upon  her  mind,  lest  her  brain  should  become 
unbalanced.  At  all  costs  her  thoughts  must  be  dis- 
tracted, unless  it  was  possible  to  offer  her  the  only 
remedy  which  could  be  thoroughly  efficacious — namely, 
the  release  which  would  naturally  terminate  her  anguish. 

The  doctor's  report  is  interesting,  both  as  it  stands 
and  as  evidence  of  the  strange  effects  of  "  Revolution 
fever "  with  which  many  people  in  France  became 
afflicted  about  this  period. 

"  In  accordance  with  an  order  given  me  on  the  I4th 
of  the  month,"  ran  the  report,  "  I  went  on  the  2jrd  to 
see  the  French  prisoner  detained  here.  I  stated  that 
her  physical  ills  were  easily  curable,  and  I  gave  instruc- 


246  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

tions  to  that  effect.  But  I  found  her  moral  condition 
utterly  degenerate,  and,  as  a  result  of  continued  physical 
and  mental  strain,  I  feared  she  might  at  any  time  give 
way  to  a  serious  disorder,  and  that  the  abuse  of  her 
constitution  might  lead  to  the  contraction  of  a  dangerous 
disease. 

u  I  therefore  considered  it  to  be  my  duty  to  report 
this  state  of  things,  and  the  condition  of  the  prisoner's 
mind  to  the  authorities,  and  to  beg  that  she  might 
have  every  possible  care,  because  if  she  did  not,  the 
treatment  I  had  ordered  would  be  likely  to  fail, 
and  immediate  aggravations  of  her  state  were  likely  to 
set  in. 

<c  How  many  people  gifted  with  these  extraordinary 
powers,  if  they  employ  them  continually  on  one  idea,  as 
occurred  and  still  occurs  in  the  case  of  this  highly- 
strung  prisoner,  are  liable  to  weaken  and  destroy  both 
body  and  mind  so  completely  as  to  have  great  difficulty 
in  restoring  them  !  This  is  an  acknowledged  fact,  and 
is  so  generally  known  that  it  is  unnecessary  to  furnish 
proofs  of  it. 

"KUFSTEIN,   25/7/1791." 

Le  Blanc,  having  received  this  report,  communicated 
it  at  once  to  Kaunitz,  and  demanded  his  authority  for 
transferring  the  prisoner.  Kaunitz  put  the  matter 
before  the  Emperor,  who  ordered  Theroigne  to  be 
brought  to  Vienna. 

In  the  early  days  of  August  1791  a  coach  and  four 
left  Kufstein  on  its  way  to  the  Austrian  capital,  and 
its  occupants  were  Theroigne,  Le  Blanc,  Mederer,  and 
a  clerk. 

The  greatest  precautions  were  taken  to  ensure  the 


Kuf  stein  247 

prisoner's  safety.  So  far  she  had  been  known  as  Mme 
Theobald,  now  she  was  called  Mme  Lahaye.  The 
journey  was  made  by  very  slow  stages.  Th6roigne's 
health  did  not  permit  of  quick  travelling.  At  this 
time  a  number  of  emigres  were  making  their  way  to 
Vienna,  amongst  them  the  famous  Mme  de  Polignac, 
who  was  accompanied  by  her  family.  Her  cortege, 
consisting  of  several  carriages  and  many  servants, 
traversed  the  same  road  on  the  same  day  that  Th£roigne 
passed  that  way. 

At  that  date  Vienna  was  still  a  fortified  town.  The 
travellers  arrived  late  at  night,  and  certain  formalities 
had  to  be  gone  through  before  they  were  admitted. 
The  heavy  carriage  was  at  last  allowed  to  proceed,  and 
rolled  on  through  deserted  streets  until  it  pulled  up 
before  a  small  house  where  one  called  Antoine  Schlosser 
lived  with  his  wife.  This  domicile  had  been  designated 
by  the  secret  police  as  a  suitable  house  of  detention  for 
Madame  Lahaye.  She  was  very  well  looked  after 
there,  and  had  a  servant  of  her  own  to  wait  on  her. 
She  was  permitted  to  take  walks,  and  was  treated,  in 
short,  as  though  she  were  no  longer  in  prison. 

By  August  3  ist  Le  Blanc  had  drawn  up  a  long 
report  of  her  case  for  the  court  in  which  she  was  to 
be  tried.  Delays  ensued,  as  invariably  happens  in  such 
cases.  Theroigne  had,  perforce,  to  remain  idle  and  in 
suspense.  She  was  pursued  by  fresh  anxieties.  Sup- 
posing her  persecutors  should  succeed  in  prejudicing 
the  Court  against  her  !  Nothing  could  satisfy  her 
but  the  one  thing  she  desired  above  all  others — her 
liberty. 

Le   Blanc   provided  her  with    money,  and    though 


248  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

she  accepted  considerable  sums  from  him  they  were 
not  sufficient  for  her  requirements.  Theroigne,  like 
most  women  of  her  class  who  have  the  capacity  for 
getting  their  friends  to  supply  them  with  means,  had 
neither  a  knowledge  of  economy  nor  arithmetic  to  help 
her  to  make  good  use  of  funds.  Ducats  burnt  her 
fingers.  She  spent  them  here  and  there  prodigally 
or  out  of  sheer  generosity.  She  had  soon  disposed  of 
many  hundreds  of  florins.  The  only  friend  besides 
Le  Blanc  she  had  in  Vienna  was  her  uncle,  the  banker 
Campinado.  She  went  to  him  and  asked  him  to  obtain 
more  money  for  her.  Then  she  persuaded  him  to 
dispatch  a  letter  to  Perregaux  expressing  her  needs. 
In  doing  this  she  broke  her  parole.  She  had  promised 
Le  Blanc  to  write  no  letters  and  send  no  word  to 
her  friends  concerning  her  whereabouts.  The  letter 
was  dated  September  i5th,  and  was  very  guarded  in 
its  statements. 

"  MONSIEUR  (it  ran), 

<CI  can  say  very  little  except  that  my  affairs 
are  not  yet  settled,  and  that  I  am  not  yet  free.  Whilst 
waiting  to  examine  the  depositions  of  the  generous 
French  chevaliers,  they  are  treating  me  very  well.  I 
am  no  longer  in  prison.  I  am  in  a  special  house  where 
they  look  after  me  as  well  as  they  possibly  can.  I 
can  walk  about  everywhere,  and  go  into  the  public 
streets  with  a  companion.  I  think  they  would  even 
let  me  go  alone  on  parole.  But  although  I  appreciate 
all  that  has  been  done  to  ameliorate  my  unjust  position, 
I  confess  frankly  that  I  am  none  the  less  unhappy. 
Nothing  gives  me  pleasure  if  I  have  not  liberty,  and 


MARIE-JOSEPH    CHENIER. 


249 


Kuf  stein  25* 

besides,  although  I  can  go  everywhere  and  speak  to 
everybody,  I  am  nevertheless  isolated  and  cannot  speak 
to  any  one  of  my  affairs,  nor  say  who  I  am,  nor  describe 
the  position  in  which  I  find  myself.  Therefore  I  can 
make  no  real  friends,  nor  receive  advice  from  a  living 
soul.  I  am  forced  to  remain  inactive  whilst  I  have 
reason  to  fear  that  my  cowardly  persecutors  will  do 
everything  possible  to  prejudice  those  against  me  in 
whose  hands  my  fate  lies.  Nevertheless  the  conclusion 
of  this  intrigue  approaches.  I  hope  that  they  will  no 
longer  take  the  Emperor's  religion  in  vain,  that  truth 
and  justice  will  triumph,  and  that  I  shall  be  free  to 
go  where  I  will,  because  I  defy  them  to  discover  that 
I  have  done  wrong,  unless  they  attribute  it  to  me  on 
account  of  my  opinions  from  which  they  greatly  differ. 
Besides,  it  would  be  a  bad  way  to  correct  patriotism 
by  impeding  liberty.  I  beg  you  to  send  as  soon  as 
possible  twenty  louis  to  my  brother.  I  do  not  know 
how  our  money  matters  stand.  If  you  have  received 
the  half-yearly  payment  of  my  income  of  3,200  livres, 
please  send  the  money  to  my  brother,  who  is  at  Liege, 
chez  Frangois  Person,  at  the  Saint  Esprit  couronn£  sur 
Meuse. 

<CTH£ROIGNE. 

"  P.S. — I  cannot  tell  you  where  I  am,  but  perhaps  I 
shall  soon  have  permission  to  write  freely  to  my  friends. 
Give  my  kindest  regards  to  all  those  who  know  me, 
and  who  speak  of  me.  I  require  forty  louis  for  my- 
self. I  shall  try  and  let  you  know  where  you  can 
send  them.  Sell  my  diamonds,  which  are  ruining  me 
in  interest.  I  pray  you  to  take  heed  of  all  my  re- 
quests." 

'5 


A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

On  October  4th  she  signed  a  declaration  in  which 
she  agreed  to  live  in  whatsoever  place  might  be  fixed 
upon  by  the  authorities.  This  limitation  did  not 
trouble  her  greatly.  Her  chief  desire  was  to  be  set 
free. 

The  delay  had  made  her  terribly  impatient. 

ct  Will  your  report  never  be  done  ? "  she  asked 
Le  Blanc  nearly  every  day. 

He  counselled  her  to  keep  calm. 

Then  she  varied  her  question.  "  Will  they  let 
me  go  ?  "  she  pleaded. 

"  I  cannot  tell  you,"  replied  the  magistrate. 

When  she  heard  that  a  formal  verdict  was  to  be 
issued  she  was  delighted.  She  was  determined  to  have 
a  copy  of  the  criminal  proceedings.  She  knew  that 
every  Dutch  citizen  was  entitled  to  a  copy. 

Le  Blanc  reminded  her  that  the  report  would  em- 
body all  her  letters  and  private  papers,  and  that  the 
mystery  of  her  life  would  be  bared  for  every  one  to 
read  it.  But  this  did  not  seem  to  trouble  her.  All 
she  desired  was  that  her  motives  should  be  understood, 
and  her  innocence  vindicated.  As  for  her  private  life, 
that  concerned  no  one.  Le  Blanc  made  a  quiet 
reference  to  the  Marquis  de  Persan.  Even  the  thought 
of  this  episode  becoming  public  property  did  not 
distress  her. 

"  What  did  the  old  man  matter  to  me  ?  "  she  re- 
plied ungratefully.  "  I  hate  the  very  thought  of  him." 

Le  Blanc  took  it  upon  himself  to  scold  her  for  her 
rashness  in  wishing  to  be  regarded  as  a  political  prisoner 
of  importance,  and  for  posing  as  a  martyr.  He  dis- 
suaded her  from  her  plan  of  having  the  report  of 


Kuf stein  253 

her  trial  published  and  distributed.  He  gave  her  a 
hint  that  there  was  a  chance  of  her  obtaining  compensa- 
tion for  her  imprisonment,  and  casually  inquired  the 
age  of  her  brothers.  She  told  him  that  one  was 
eighteen,  one  twenty-two,  and  the  third  was  married 
in  Paris.  Le  Blanc  praised  her  for  the  anxiety  and 
solicitude  she  showed  on  their  behalf,  and  suggested 
that  possibly  the  Emperor  might  allow  them  to  enter 
the  army — as  lieutenants. 

"  That  would  be  magnificent,"  she  cried. 

Le  Blanc's  trust  in  the  prisoner  was  somewhat 
shaken  when  she  told  him  that  without  his  knowledge 
she  had  been  allowed  two  interviews  with  Prince 
Kaunitz  and  one  with  the  Emperor.  She  declared 
triumphantly  that  the  latter  had  given  her  permission 
to  return  to  her  own  country. 

The  examining  magistrate  was  furious  because  she 
had  managed  to  arrange  all  this  behind  his  back.  He 
threatened  to  have  her  clapped  into  prison  again. 

A  fortnight  later,  on  November  24th,  Mme  Lahaye 
was  summoned  to  the  court. 

She  was  received  sternly  by  the  judge,  who  re- 
proved her  in  a  long  speech. 

"  So,  madame,"  he  began,  "  it  is  not  enough  that 
we  should  have  to  read  columns  of  lamentable  de- 
tails concerning  the  incidents  of  the  French  Revo- 
lution in  your  pr aces-verbal  and  other  documents 
relating  to  your  affairs,  but  you  consider  it  necessary  to 
add  your  personal  opinions  with  regard  to  the  causes 
of  this  catastrophe.  Not  content  with  describing 
terrible  and  bloodthirsty  scenes  in  poetical  language, 
you  do  not  hesitate — madly  anxious  to  proselytise 


254  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

as  you  are — to  try  to  persuade  us  that  the  reasons 
you  give  for  your  revolutionary  frenzy  are  excellent 
ones.  ...  It  is  your  democratic  fanaticism,  and  that 
of  others  like  you,  which  is  at  the  root  of  the  evil. 
It  is  culpable  and  is  the  cause  of  the  present  impossible 
state  of  France.  Is  his  Majesty  Louis  XVI.  the 
author  of  the  troubles  and  scandals  of  Paris  and  of 
Versailles  ?  Not  at  all  !  It  is  the  mad  folly  of  such 
as  yourself.  Without  the  demoniacal  passion  which 
possesses  you  and  blinds  you,  you  and  your  co- 
religionists in  Paris,  there  would  be  no  cries,  no 
tumults,  no  struggles,  no  tears,  and  no  blood  in  the 
streets  of  the  capital.  And  you  call  this  the  fulfilment 
of  your  duties  as  a  good  citizen.  .  .  ."  And  he 
proceeded  to  heap  vituperation  upon  her  head. 

She  replied  proudly : 

"My  ideas  are  what  they  are,  and  it  is  useless  to 
use  such  grand  words  and  gestures  to  contradict  them. 
The  truth  is  that  I  am  a  fervent  patriot  and  a  good 
citoyenne.  You  condemn  the  republic  :  that  is  your 
duty.  I,  on  the  other  hand,  condemn  the  monarchy  : 
I  think  I  am  right  in  doing  so.  Besides  I  have  only 
one  hope.  It  is  that  the  principles  of  '89  and  the 
acknowledgment  of  the  Rights  of  Man  should  spread 
throughout  Europe  and  to  every  country  in  the  world. 
In  this  work  I  have  tried  to  help.  I  have  not  com- 
mitted any  crimes,  and  nobody  can  produce  a  proof 
to  the  contrary  !  " 

"You  think  so!  But  the  Chatelet  of  Paris  has 
nevertheless  stigmatised  you  as  a  dangerous  person  .  .  . 
it  would  be  a  good  idea  to  shut  you  up  in  a  convent. 
There,  submitting  to  a  severe  but  human  rule,  you 


Kufstein  255 

would  lead  a  tranquil  life  and  be  set  free  on  the  day  you 
gave  an  understanding  never  again  to  rail  at  society." 

"  That  day  would  never  come  !  .  .  .  I  swear " 

She  uttered  the  words  in  a  strident  voice. 

After  pointing  out  to  her  that,  in  accordance  with 
the  doctors'  depositions,  it  was  within  his  power  to 
have  her  shut  up  for  the  safety  of  the  public  health, 
he  explained  at  some  length  that  she  ought  to  know 
that  her  fate — nay,  life  itself — hung  entirely  in  the 
power  of  the  Government  and  the  Emperor. 

At  his  first  words  Theroigne  seemed  to  feel  every 
vestige  of  the  hope  of  freedom  in  which  she  had 
indulged  oozing  away,  and  she  was  overcome  with 
despair,  but  at  his  mention  of  the  Emperor  she  raised 
her  head,  and  gravely  looked  at  the  man  who  was 
torturing  her.  She  had  faith  in  the  clemency  of 
Leopold  II. 

There  was  a  short  pause,  and  then  she  heard  the 
deep  tones  of  the  judge  once  more  addressing  her. 

"  Hear  the  Emperor's  will." 

"  Yes,  monsieur,"  she  replied.  "  I  am  ready  to 
face  the  worst.  Speak." 

<l  He  has  ordered  a  change  of  residence  for  you." 

A  smile  spread  over  her  face. 

<c  To-morrow  you  will  leave  Vienna.  Councillor 
le  Blanc  is  instructed  to  hand  over  to  you  the  sum 
of  six  hundred  florins." 

"  What  is  that  amount  for  ?  "  she  asked,  her  lips 
quivering. 

"  For  the  expenses  of  your  journey." 

"  What  journey,  monsieur  ?  Put  me  out  of  sus- 
pense, I  beg,  as  you  love  me." 


256  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

"  To-morrow  you  leave  for  Brussels." 

u  Ah  !  "  she  cried.  u  A  thousand  thanks,  monsieur. 
What  am  I  to  do  at — Brussels  ?  " 

"  You  will  go  thence  to  Liege." 

"And  there?"  Her  voice  trembled  with  excite- 
ment, her  eyes  were  shining,  her  face  full  of  an 
unearthly  light. 

"  At  Liege  you  will  be  allowed  your " 

"  Great  heavens  !     My  liberty  ?  " 

cc  You  have  guessed  right,  Mile  Theroigne.  Your 
liberty.  Perfect  liberty." 

With  reference  to  these  proceedings  the  Moniteur 
contains  two  interesting  notes.  The  first  appears  in 
the  issue  of  November  i6th,  1791,  under  news  from 
Vienna  of  October  29th.  It  reads  as  follows : 

"  M.  de  Plank  [le  Blanc],  charged  to  inquire  into 
the  case  of  the  famous  Mile  Theroigne  de  Mericourt, 
still  imprisoned  at  Kufstein,  under  the  pretext  of  an 
attempt  on  the  life  of  the  Queen  of  France,  has  just 
arrived  here.  He  has  submitted  to  the  Emperor  the 
protocol  of  the  inquiry  and  proceedings.  The  result 
is  that  it  appears  they  arrested  this  young  lady  on 
insufficient  evidence,  and  that  the  accusations  against 
her  have  no  foundation  in  fact." 

The  second  note  appears  in  the  issue  of  December 
22nd,  1791,  under  news  from  Vienna  of  December  3rd  : 

u  The  Emperor  has  set  at  liberty  Mile  Theroigne, 
and  has  given  orders  that  the  expenses  of  her  journey 
should  be  paid.  This  individual,  having  been  de- 
tained for  a  long  time  in  the  fortress  of  Kufstein 
in  the  Tyrol,  was  conducted  to  Vienna  to  be  questioned 


Kuf  stein  257 

on  the  supposed  plot  against  the  life  of  the  Queen 
of  France." 

The  Petit  Gauthier  announced  the  fact  of  The- 
roigne's  release  in  its  issue  of  December  i5th  in 
the  following  terms  : 

"  The  vicious  [only  they  used  a  stronger  word] 
creature  who  is  called  Theroigne  de  Mericourt,  the 
same  who  on  October  6th,  1789,  planned  the  most 
horrible  of  crimes,  is  now  at  Brussels.  She  presented 
herself  before  the  worthy  Minister  Metternich.  Her 
savage  audacity  has  not  been  diminished  by  her  sojourn 
in  Austrian  dungeons.  She  had  the  atrocious  im- 
pudence to  say  before  the  minister  :  Is  it  not  just 
to  sacrifice  a  handful  of  nobles  to  millions  of  citizens  ? 
The  apparition  of  this  wandering  corpse  [another 
stronger  term]  exasperates  all  the  honest  people  in 
this  country.  She  is  staying  at  the  sign  of  rHomme 
Sauvage,  who  was  never  as  barbaric  as  she." 

But  Theroigne  was  free.  For  the  moment,  at  any 
rate,  she  could  afford  to  ignore  these  coarse  jests. 

On  January  5th,  1792,  she  wrote  to  Perregaux 
from  Brussels  :  "  Now  that  I  am  free,  that  1  am 
sure  of  being  able  to  go  wherever  I  wish,  that  I  am 
content  with  the  justice  done  me  by  the  Emperor,  I 
feel  that  I  ought  to  say  that  during  the  time  of  my 
unjust  detention  they  treated  me  kindly  enough. 

<k  As  for  your  aristocrats,  they  employed  the  basest 
means,  the  most  infamous  intrigues,  in  their  endeavour 
to  make  me  lose  my  liberty  for  ever.  I  assure  you 
that  if  it  had  depended  only  on  them  I  should  still 
be  in  the  fortress  of  Kufstein.  Such  is  the  character 
of  French  noblemen  ! 


258  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

cc  I  should  be  much  obliged,  monsieur,  if  you  would 
send  me  thirty  louis,  which  kindly  change  in  Paris. 
If  you  have  only  assignats  I  should  lose  less  that  way. 
I  beg  you  to  send  me  what  I  ask  by  the  first  courier,  as 
I  have  not  a  centime  to  pay  either  lodging  or  board. 
Please  address  your  reply  to  the  poste  restante,  Brussels." 

From  Brussels  Theroigne  also  wrote  to  the  Baron 
de  Selys  to  tell  him  of  her  interview  with  Leopold  II., 
but  unfortunately  this  letter  has  been  lost.  A  refer- 
ence occurs  to  it,  however,  on  the  back  of  the  copy 
of  the  Baron's  reply.  De  Selys  jotted  down  notes 
as  to  the  contents  of  the  letter,  consisting  of  an  account 
of  a  talk  with  the  Emperor,  and  questions  as  to  what 
had  been  done  with  her  jewels  and  the  amount  of  the 
money  which  had  been  lent  to  her  brothers. 

For  some  time  afterwards  the  Baron  heard  no  further 
news  of  Theroigne  except  vague  rumours  that  she  had 
returned  to  Paris. 

The  difficulty  about  the  jewels  was  not  settled, 
however.  On  February  23rd,  1792,  Theroigne  wrote 
to  Perregaux  from  Paris  asking  him  to  reclaim  the 
diamond  necklace  from  the  Baron  de  Fan9on,  as  she 
now  called  him. 

Altogether  she  had  pawned  thirteen  articles  of 
jewellery,  and  had  received  a  sum  of  nearly  eight 
thousand  livres  in  loans  on  them. 

Her  pecuniary  difficulties  were  as  insistent  as  before, 
and  notes  of  this  period  to  Perregaux  all  contain 
requests  for  money. 

Poverty  seemed  but  a  trifling  drawback  in  view  of 
her  glorious  liberty.  Was  she  not  free  to  plunge 
afresh  into  the  intense  excitement  of  the  Revolution  ? 


CHAPTER  VII 

TO  ARMS!    TO  ARMS! 

npHEROIGNE  had  left  Paris  at  the  beginning  of 
A  May  1790.  She  returned  early  in  1792,  after 
an  absence  from  the  capital  of  nearly  two  years.  The 
amnesty  which  abolished  proceedings  against  all  active 
revolutionists  had  been  proclaimed  on  September  1 5th, 
1791.  The  tide  of  the  Revolution  was  sweeping  on 
to  its  flood,  and  event  after  event  had  taken  place  in 
which  Theroigne  had  been  debarred  from  playing  any 
part. 

Almost  the  day  she  left  there  had  been  a  massacre 
of  the  National  Guard  at  Montauban,  and  this  outrage 
was  reflected  in  the  mournful  streets  of  Paris.  About 
this  time,  too,  there  had  been  an  outburst  in  the 
provincial  towns  of  Federations,  or  Feasts  of  Union, 
at  which  all  men  declared  themselves  brothers.  In- 
spiriting scenes  of  this  character  had  been  held  at 
Lyons  in  May,  at  Lille  early  in  June,  and  in  other 
towns,  causing  a  very  fever  of  Federation  to  enter 
the  blood  of  all  the  French  people.  The  result  of 
this  infectious  spirit  was  the  arranging  of  a  general 
fete  for  the  whole  of  France,  timed  to  take  place  on 
the  anniversary  of  the  Fall  of  the  Bastille.  The  story 
of  the  famous  Feast  of  Pikes  will  never  be  forgotten. 

The  work  on  the   Champ  de   Mars  getting  behind- 

259 


260  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

hand,  the  people,  both  men  and  women,  turned  out 
in  thousands  to  dig  and  delve,  to  wheel  earth  about, 
and  fashion  it  into  mounds  for  seats.  Students, 
cavaliers,  monks,  nuns,  shop-keepers,  children,  grey- 
beards, beggars,  nobles,  and  Court  ladies  took  their 
turn  at  digging,  day  and  night,  in  rain  or  shine. 
Who  can  forget  that  Abbe  Sieves  and  de  Beau- 
harnais  tugged  at  the  same  cart  ?  Even  the  King 
was  not  spared.  He  wielded  his  spade  to  the  joyous 
accompaniment  of  the  people's  applause. 

Theroigne  would  have  been  in  her  element  here. 
It  was  a  thousand  pities  that  she  could  neither  handle 
shovel  nor  trundle  barrow  ;  that  her  cheery  voice  was 
not  heard  encouraging  others  in  their  toil  (they  were 
few,  after  all,  who  needed  encouragement)  ;  that  she 
could  not  be  heard  chanting  in  flute-like  notes  the 
inspiring  "  Ca  ira,"  which  was  not  yet  the  horrible 
"  Ca  ira "  it  later  became.  She  missed  the  sight  of 
thousands  of  delegates  from  the  provinces,  representing 
tens  of  thousands  of  armed  men,  taking  sacred  oath 
on  the  altar  of  the  country  to  maintain  the  new 
Constitution.  The  King  was  present,  the  members 
of  the  National  Assembly,  the  army  of  Paris,  and 
an  imposing  array  of  citizens.  The  impressive  cere- 
mony began  with  a  mass.  It  was  at  that  mass  the 
story  was  told  of  Talleyrand,  still  known  as  the 
Bishop  of  Autun,  that  when  he  approached  the  altar 
he  whispered  in  the  ear  of  Lafayette  :  "  Whatever 
you  do,  don't  make  me  laugh  !  "  Absurd  probably, 
but  it  is  the  kind  of  story  that  remains  in  the 
memory. 

Through   these   and   all    the   happenings   of    1790 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  261 

Theroigne  was  far  away  from  Paris,  regretting  the 
reasons  that  made  it  wise  for  her  to  remain  in  hiding. 
She  probably  heard  as  much  as  most  people  of  the 
disaffection  in  the  army  and  mutinies  among  the 
soldiers  in  various  districts  of  the  country.  The  riots 
at  Nancy  in  August  1790,  involving  the  Swiss  of 
Chateauvieux,  led  directly  to  the  fete  in  April  1792, 
given  to  those  who  were  taken  prisoner.  Theroigne 
helped  to  organise  it. 

At  the  opening  of  the  year  1791  a  great  inclination 
to  emigrate  was  noticed  on  the  part  of  the  nobility, 
a  desire  shared  also  by  royalty.  The  story  of  that 
emigration  is  long  enough  and  exciting  enough  to 
fill  volumes.  Throughout  France  people  were  steal- 
ing more  or  less  openly  to  the  frontiers,  longing 
to  be  safely  across  the  borders  ;  gathering  in  little 
coteries  in  out-of-the-way  spots  ;  homeless  wanderers 
setting  forth  in  their  great  travelling  coaches  with 
fear  in  their  hearts,  often  only  too  well  justified, 
that  they  might  never  see  their  beautiful  chateaux 
again. 

In  the  minds  of  the  masses  the  word  that  rever- 
berated was  Federation,  in  the  minds  of  the  classes 
it  was  Emigration.  Both  possessed  but  one  idea — the 
former  to  be  knit  more  closely  together  in  the  centre 
of  things,  the  latter,  on  the  contrary,  to  spread  out 
and  scatter.  The  lowest  in  the  land  were  affected  by 
the  prevailing  tendency  as  well  as  the  highest.  Even 
those  closely  related  to  the  King — his  brothers,  for 
instance — were  not  immune  from  the  epidemic  of 
flight,  and  among  those  who  carried  it  into  effect 
with  success  were  the  forlorn  maiden  ladies,  Mesdames, 


262  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Louis  XVI. 's  elderly  aunts.  On  February  I9th  they 
left  Bellevue,  their  home,  arousing  a  clatter  of  dis- 
cussion over  this  pathetic  escape.  The  people,  unable 
to  detain  their  persons,  absolutely  refused  to  allow 
the  luggage  to  follow,  and  invaded  their  household 
with  a  view  to  seizing  all  their  possessions. 

Among  the  many  unwarrantable  calumnies  uttered 
and  written  against  Th6roigne  is  one  by  a  chronicler 
who  goes  so  far  as  to  make  her  play  a  part  in  the 
doings  of  that  day,  although,  in  reality,  she  was  many 
miles  from  the  scene  of  action.  This  trifler — vaude- 
villiste  he  has  been  called — is  Georges  Duval,  who, 
in  his  "  Souvenirs  de  la  Terreur,"  says  of  Theroigne  : 
<c  She  commanded  the  mob  of  male  and  female  bandits 
who  came  to  besiege  Bellevue  on  February  I9th,  1791. 
They  arrived,  brandishing  pikes  and  sabres,  in  the 
Court  of  Honour,  and  perceiving  the  door  which  led 
into  the  apartments  of  the  chateau  open,  they  entered 
and  crowded  into  all  the  corners,  inspected  the  coffers, 
visited  the  armouries,  looked  under  the  beds,  and 
forced  their  pikes  into  the  mattresses  of  Mesdames 
in  the  same  manner  as  was  done  at  Versailles  into 
those  of  the  Queen.  It  was,  in  short,  another  5th 
of  October."  Nothing  was  found  ;  their  prey  had 
escaped  them  ;  and  the  people  gave  way  to  trans- 
ports of  rage.  Theroigne,  in  her  position  of  leader, 
incited  them  to  set  fire  to  the  castle.  They  were 
about  to  carry  out  this  order  when  something  hap- 
pened to  change  the  trend  of  their  thoughts.  Their 
wanderings  by  torchlight  had  brought  them  to  the 
dining-room,  where  supper  was  served.  The  sight  of 
food  made  them  forget  their  purpose.  They  flocked 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  263 

round    the   table   like    harpies    and    seized    upon   the 
various  dishes,  nor  did  they  spare  the  wine. 

Meanwhile  the  National  Guard  had  been  sum- 
moned from  Versailles,  but  did  not  arrive  in  time 
to  prevent  these  depredations.  It  is  here  that  the 
author  of  the  narrative  allows  his  imagination  to  get 
so  much  the  better  of  his  discretion  that  he  accuses 
Theroigne  of  being  drunk  and  in  a  fit  of  frenzy 
snatching  up  a  lighted  torch.  u  Those  who  love  me 
will  follow  me  and  fire  the  chateau,"  she  cried.  With 
Jeanne  le  Due  and  others  close  upon  her  heels,  she 
tore  through  the  apartments,  intent  on  her  wicked 
deed,  when  a  second  discovery  caused  a  diversion. 
A  huge  chest  had  been  found  in  a  little-used  apart- 
ment, in  which  at  first  it  was  thought  the  princesses 
themselves  might  be  concealed.  This  was  not  the 
case,  but  the  capture  was  hardly  less  valuable,  since 
it  yielded  booty  in  the  shape  of  plate,  jewels,  and 
other  rich  treasure.  At  this  moment  the  National 
Guard  arrived,  and  put  a  stop  to  the  nefarious  schemes 
of  the  intending  pillagers,  and  the  phantom  Theroigne 
disappears  from  the  scene. 

Theioigne  saw  none  of  the  doings  of  the  Day  of 
Poignards  on  February  28th,  nor  of  the  immediate 
results  of  the  suppression  of  the  barriers  in  the  spring. 
She  was  not  in  Paris  when  Mirabeau  died  on  April  2nd, 
nor  for  his  magnificent  funeral  on  the  4th.  She  was 
spared  the  excitement  of  the  flight  to  Varennes  in 
June  and  the  return  of  the  royal  family  under  the 
guardianship  of  her  friends  Petion  and  Barnave.  Her 
enthusiasm  would  have  reached  fever-heat  and  her 
tears  of  pride  have  been  shed  freely  on  July  nth 


264  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

when  the  remains  of  Voltaire  were  borne  in  triumph 
to  the  Pantheon,  had  she  been  there  to  see. 

Only  a  few  days  later  the  people's  great  petition 
demanding  the  deposition  of  the  King  was  laid  on 
the  altar  of  the  country,  which  still  stood  on  the  Champ 
de  Mars.  This  petition  was  the  result  of  the  people's 
displeasure  with  the  National  Assembly,  which,  still 
profoundly  monarchical,  hesitated  to  declare  that  the 
King,  who  had  turned  his  back  on  the  throne,  had 
forfeited  his  right  to  sit  there.  The  Club  des  Jacobins, 
growing  more  powerful  day  by  day,  and  with  whose 
ideals  those  of  Theroigne  coincided,  had  said,  uWe 
no  longer  recognise  Louis  XVI."  The  Club  des 
Cordeliers,  going  a  step  farther,  added,  "  Nor  any 
other  king."  Thus  was  Republicanism  born. 

The  mighty  petition  was  soon  covered  by  thousands 
of  signatures.  The  National  Assembly,  taking  fright 
at  this  demonstration  of  feeling,  ordered  Lafayette 
and  Bailly  to  march  troops  to  the  scene  of  action, 
and  there  proclaim  martial  law.  After  in  vain  com- 
manding the  people  three  times  to  retire,  the  soldiers 
fired  on  the  crowd,  and  covered  the  altar  of  the 
country  with  dead  and  dying.  The  conflict  dealt 
a  serious  blow  to  the  popularity  of  Bailly  and 
Lafayette. 

From  July  1789  to  September  1791  the  National 
Assembly  had  worked  faithfully  at  the  Constitution, 
according  to  the  oath  sworn  in  the  Tennis-court. 
When  finished,  the  new  laws  comprised  thousands  of 
decrees.  When  the  Constitution  was  completed,  the 
King,  released  from  his  suspension  by  the  Assembly, 
was  invited  to  take  his  oath  of  acceptance,  and  he  did 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  265 

so  on  the  i4th.  Afterwards  the  National  Assembly, 
in  whose  sittings  Theroigne  had  shown  indefatigable 
interest,  declared  its  work  completed.  Before  separating, 
and  at  the  instigation  of  Robespierre,  who  proposed 
the  resolution,  the  Assembly  decided  that  none  of 
its  members  should  take  a  part  in  the  new  legislative 
body,  which,  under  the  name  of  the  Legislative 
Assembly,  met  first  on  October  ist,  1791,  the  day 
after  the  dissolution  of  its  predecessor.  Like  the 
Constituent  Assembly,  the  new  body  was  composed 
of  seven  hundred  and  forty-seven  members.  It  sat 
until  September  2ist,  1792,  and  then  transmitted  its 
power  to  the  National  Convention,  which  proclaimed 
a  republic. 

Long  before  that  date  Theroigne  had  thrown  herself 
with  a  new  vigour  into  the  tide  of  popular  affairs. 
As  she  passed  through  the  streets  of  Paris  on  her 
return  in  January  she  was  greeted  as  a  martyr  and 
a  saint.  Little  knots  of  people  gathered  round  her 
as  she  told  her  adventures,  and  she  was  urged  to 
mount  a  platform,  where  all  could  see  the  woman 
who  had  suffered  imprisonment  in  an  Austrian  jail 
for  the  sake  of  liberty.  She  was  wearing  a  short 
skirt,  a  soldier's  jacket,  and  a  hat  with  a  long  feather. 
The  warm  greeting  of  the  people  thrilled  and  excited 
her.  All  her  past  misery  was  forgotten.  She  shook 
hands  heartily  with  those  who  pressed  round  to 
welcome  her,  and  promised  to  put  renewed  energy 
into  her  labour  for  the  cause.  Thus,  by  slow  degrees, 
she  made  her  way  to  the  Club  des  Jacobins,  where 
she  expected,  and  rightly  expected,  to  be  received  in 
triumph. 


266  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Her  visit  was  in  the  nature  of  a  surprise.  The 
usual  business  was  proceeding. 

The  hall  in  which  this  influential  club  met  was  fitted 
up  in  nearly  the  same  style  as  the  one  in  which  the 
legislative  body  sat.  The  tribune,  or  pulpit,  from 
which  the  members  spoke  was  opposite  to  that  in 
which  the  president  was  seated.  There  was  a  table 
for  the  secretaries  and  galleries  for  a  large  audience 
of  strangers  of  both  sexes,  in  one  as  in  the  other. 
Men  were  appointed  to  walk  through  the  hall  and 
command,  or  at  least  solicit,  silence  when  the  debate 
became  turbulent,  after  the  fashion  of  the  ushers  at 
the  Assembly.  Nor  had  their  efforts  much  more 
success  here  than  there.  The  bell  of  the  president, 
the  cries  of  those  whose  business  it  was  to  keep  order, 
were  equally  disregarded  in  stormy  debates  in  both 
places. 

That  day  there  was  no  uproar  in  the  house,  only 
the  low  drone  of  the  members'  voices  discussing  the 
possibilities  of  the  opening  year. 

It  was  January  26th,  1792.  Gaudet  was  in  the 
president's  chair,  and  Lostalot  described  to  the  assem- 
bled company  an  Englishman's  scheme  for  putting  the 
people  through  certain  new  tactical  exercises  which 
in  six  weeks  were  guaranteed  to  render  them  equal 
to  trained  troops — a  Utopian  idea  which  can  hardly 
have  worked  out  in  practice.  Hion  proposed  that  the 
National  Assembly  be  asked  to  replace  the  battalions 
of  Paris  by  French  guards  and  soldiers  of  the  people. 
Danton  supported  this  proposition.  Lasource  and 
Robespierre  disagreed  over  the  question  of  public 
contributions  to  funds,  the  latter  asserting  that  this 


BRISSOT. 


267 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  269 

motion  was  put  forward  to  distract  public  attention 
from  more  important  questions.  This  remark  caused 
such  a  tumult  of  objections  that  the  president  was 
obliged  to  interfere.  The  babel  of  excited  voices,  the 
splutters  and  ejaculations,  died  away.  A  diversion  was 
caused  by  the  arrival  of  a  deputation  from  one  of  the 
fraternal  societies.  A  proposition  was  made  by  the 
leader  of  the  deputation  that  a  petition  should  be 
addressed  to  the  Assembly  requesting  that  certain 
galleries  recently  opened  to  those  who  possessed 
influence  should  be  as  free  to  the  public  as  the  others. 
Again  there  were  cries  and  gesticulations  and  the 
murmur  of  the  crowd.  Lostalot,  who  had  taken  the 
president's  place,  remarked  that  denunciations  of  this 
nature  touched  upon  constitutional  matters,  and  could 
not  be  dealt  with  by  the  society.  At  this  moment 
the  tinkle  of  the  president's  bell  announced  a  new 
speaker.  It  was  Dufourny.  Looking  round  the  full 
house,  he  said  he  had  something  of  importance  to 
communicate.  A  woman,  celebrated  for  her  devotion 
to  the  State  and  for  the  persecutions  she  had  suffered 
at  the  hands  of  tyranny  during  her  stay  in  Austria, 
was  present  in  the  hall  that  day.  He  believed  the 
assembled  members  would  like  to  show  in  the  usual 
manner  their  appreciation  of  a  martyrdom  endured 
for  the  people's  cause.  He  would  call  upon  Mile 
Theroigne  de  Mericourt — for  it  was  she — to  come 
forward  and  receive  the  greetings  of  the  Assembly. 

His   words    were    drowned    in    loud    applause,   and 

many  members  rose  from  their  seats  and  hastened  to 

the  back  of  the  hall,  where  Theroigne  was  standing 

among  a  crowd  of  women.     They  insisted  on  escorting 

16 


2  yo  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

her  to  a  prominent  place  in  the  centre.  As  she  came 
forward,  smiling,  a  slim,  small  figure,  her  chestnut 
locks  loose  beneath  the  feathered  cap,  her  coat,  her 
short  skirt,  and  even  her  shoes  adorned  with  tricolour 
ribbons,  there  was  a  moment's  tense  silence,  then  a 
tumultuous  uproar  ;  then  silence  again. 

"  Friends,"  she  said,  stretching  out  her  arms  as 
though  to  embrace  every  one. 

"  Vive  Mile  Theroigne !  "  came  the  stirring  cry 
from  hundreds  of  throats.  She  was  reaping  the  reward 
of  months  of  suffering.  She  was  keenly  alive  to  the 
interest  her  sex  and  her  misfortunes  had  aroused. 

At  the  first  pause  she  spoke,  thanking  the  assembled 
company  for  their  gracious  reception.  Her  words 
were  simple,  but  her  tones  thrilled  her  hearers. 
Never  had  her  gift  of  oratory  appeared  to  better 
advantage. 

When  she  ceased  speaking  Dufourny  addressed  a 
few  graceful  phrases  to  her,  expressing  the  pleasure 
experienced  by  the  members  of  the  Jacobins  Club 
in  seeing  her  back  in  their  midst. 

These  remarks  were  received  by  a  second  ovation, 
and  many  patriots,  among  the  most  enthusiastic  of 
whom  was  the  Abbe  Si£yes,  hastened  to  pay  court  to 
her  in  person. 

Theroigne  was  then  requested  to  continue  her 
narrative,  but  this  she  refused  to  do,  saying  she  would 
write  down  an  account  of  her  imprisonment  and  read 
it  at  some  future  date. 

On  January  29th  Lostalot  announced  that  Mile 
Theroigne  had  intended  on  that  day  to  give  them 
a  description  of  her  misfortunes  during  her  stay  in 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  271 

Austria,  but  was  unable  to  fulfil  her  promise.  She 
proposed  to  acquit  herself  of  the  obligation  she  had 
contracted  towards  the  society  on  the  following 
Wednesday. 

On  February  ist,  at  the  request  of  a  deputy, 
Theroigne  read  the  discourse  she  had  prepared  before 
the  assembly  of  Jacobins.  It  was  proposed  that  her 
account  should  be  amplified  in  a  memoir,  but  no  traces 
occur  of  this  having  been  printed. 

She  told  her  adventures  with  candour  and  picturesque- 
ness.  She  praised  the  Emperor  highly,  said  little  in 
favour  of  Prince  Kaunitz,  and  declared  that  the  patriots 
had  friends  and  partisans  everywhere — in  the  Low 
Countries,  in  Germany,  even  in  Leopold  II.'s  palace. 
She  urged  them  on  to  action,  and  succeeded  that  day 
in  thoroughly  rousing  the  Jacobins. 

"  The  society  bore  witness  to  the  keenest  indignation 
against  her  infamous  persecutors,"  said  Brissot's  Journal, 
the  Patriote  Franfais,  in  its  number  of  February  4th, 
1792,  "as  well  as  the  highest  admiration  for  the 
constancy  she  has  shown.  This  lover  of  the  people 
has  pointed  out  the  best,  nay,  the  only,  means  of 
establishing  our  liberty  on  a  firm  basis  ;  it  is  to  bring 
war  against  the  rebels  and  despots  who  menace  us  with 
hostilities,  and  yet  fear  them  more  than  we  do." 

Her  account  finished,  Theroigne  stood  silent,  the 
cynosure  of  all  eyes.  The  president  rang  his  bell, 
and  Lanthenas  rose  to  address  thanks  to  her  in  person. 

"  Love  of  liberty,"  he  began,  "  placed  by  nature  in 
every  heart,  made  you  cherish  our  glorious  Revolution, 
mademoiselle.  Your  sentiments  have  drawn  perse- 
cutions upon  you.  That  is  a  certain  claim  upon  our 


272  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

esteem.  Your  example  demonstrates  to  all  the  friends 
of  liberty  the  power  of  this  silent  resistance,  which 
is  based  on  the  elevated  ideals  of  the  soul,  and  by 
means  of  which  the  most  feeble  individuals  have  often 
made  tyrants  pale  before  them.  The  innate  energy  at 
the  back  of  this  resistance  has  often  been  possessed  by 
women  in  such  a  large  degree  as  to  seem  almost  a 
supernatural  gift  in  the  eyes  of  ignorant  people.  In 
this  enlightened  age  men  will  be  moved  by  sheer 
natural  inclination  whenever  your  sex  reveals  grace 
accompanied  by  civic  virtue,  a  combination  which  must 
eternally  excite  our  enthusiasm.  Brave  citoyenne, 
repeat  what  you  have  done  and  suffered  for  the  sake 
of  liberty  in  all  assemblies  which  public  interest  gathers 
together,  even  as  you  did  here  in  our  presence.  And 
believe  that  wherever  true  French  hearts  beat,  you  will 
have  accomplished  something  useful  in  the  advancement 
of  universal  freedom.'* 

Then  the  staunch  Jacobin  Manuel  stood  up  to 
speak.  "  Once  there  was  a  time,"  he  said,  "  when  a 
certain  society  of  men  desired  to  know  whether  women 
possessed  a  soul.  As  a  matter  of  fact  this  society  was 
composed  chiefly  of  priests,  double-faced  gentlemen 
who  always  wear  an  air  of  contempt  towards  women,  in 
order  that  it  may  not  seem  as  though  they  cared  too 
much  for  them.  ...  If  our  forefathers  indulged  in  so 
low  a  conception  of  womanhood,  it  was  because  they 
were  not  free,  for  liberty  would  have  taught  them,  as  it 
has  taught  us,  that  it  is  quite  as  easy  for  nature  to 
create  Portias  as  Scaevolas.  You  have  just  been  listening 
to  one  of  the  first  Amazons  of  liberty.  She  has  been  a 
martyr  to  the  Constitution.  I  demand  that  she  should 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  273 

partake   of  the    honours    of  this  meeting    as    woman 
president,  seated  by  the  president's  side." 

Delighted  as  she  was  with  her  enthusiastic  reception, 
with  the  halo  of  martyrdom  which  public  opinion  had 
placed  upon  her  brow,  Theroigne  had  no  intention  of 
resting  upon  her  laurels.  She  knew  it  was  time  for 
action,  she  realised  in  a  flash  the  change  that  had  come 
about  in  the  attitude  of  the  people  since  her  departure, 
two  years  earlier.  To  them  the  alteration  had  been 
gradual,  to  her  it  seemed  sudden,  and  therefore  the 
more  significant,  the  more  appalling. 

Whilst  Marie- Antoinette  sat  in  her  boudoir  earnestly 
planning  an  invasion  that  might  save  her  husband,  his 
country,  and  their  child,  never  doubting  that  grape- 
shot  would  teach  the  rebellious  French  a  lesson  it  was 
high  time  they  learnt,  while  she  wrote  letters  to  her 
brother,  the  Emperor,  and  to  Mercy-Argenteau,  in  the 
hope  of  producing  the  result  that  was  nearest  to  her 
heart,  Theroigne  in  her  humble  and  untutored  way 
was  doing  her  utmost  to  help  in  bringing  these 
same  schemes  to  naught.  The  Queen  incited  men 
to  war  upon  the  kingdom  over  which  she  ruled;  the 
woman  of  the  people  called  to  her  sisters  to  arm  them- 
selves and  try  to  defend  the  country  that  was  thus 
betrayed. 

Although  she  did  not  flourish  a  sabre  as  fiercely  as 
the  notorious  Alexandrine  Barreau,  or  hop  as  gaily 
in  the  bayonet  dance  as  the  sisters  Fernig,  Theroigne 
was  all  aflame  in  the  great  cause. 

First  and  foremost  an  orator  of  the  cross-roads,  a 
clubist  of  the  streets,  she  was  so  inspired  by  the  military 
ardour  of  women  throughout  the  provinces  that  she 


274  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

attempted  to  organise  in  Paris  a  battalion  of  warriors 
on  the  lines  of  those  already  in  existence  in  the  country. 
In  Angers  as  early  as  1789  women  had  desired  to 
enrol  in  the  auxiliary  services.  "  We,  mothers,  sisters, 
wives,  and  lovers  of  the  young  citizens  of  Angers," 
they  said  in  a  petition  to  the  authorities,  "  declare 
that  if  there  should  be  an  outbreak  of  war  occasioning 
the  departure  of  troops  from  the  town,  we  desire  to 
join  with  the  country  in  protecting  our  interests  ;  and 
since  we  are  not  qualified  to  use  force,  we  wish  to  make 
it  our  duty  to  look  after  the  baggage,  food,  and  various 
preparations  for  the  marching  of  the  soldiers,  which 
services  might  well  depend  on  us,  for  we  prefer  the 
glory  of  sharing  their  danger  to  the  security  of  shameful 


inaction." 


Two  years  later  these  women  subscribed  a  thousand 
livres  to  purchase  a  flag  for  the  volunteers  of  the 
National  Guard.  This  example  was  followed  by  the 
women  of  Brest  and  Nantes.  At  Aunay  a  "  corps 
d'Amazones  nationales  "  was  formed  by  women  who 
swore  to  be  faithful  to  the  Nation,  to  the  Law,  and  to 
the  King — ill-natured  people  added,  to  their  husbands 
or  lovers  ! 

From  the  summer  of  1790  onwards  several  legions 
of  women  warriors  were  formed. 

At  Creil  the  uniform  worn  was  a  white  tunic,  short 
skirt,  plain  cap,  a  cockade  worn  on  the  breast,  and  a 
federal  badge  of  gilded  leather  which  bore  the  Gallic 
cock  on  one  side,  with  an  inscription  "  Citoyenne  de 
Creil,"  and  on  the  other  side  a  laurel  wreath  round 
three  hearts,  with  the  device  "  F Union  fait  notre 
vertu."  The  officers  wore  white  tunics  faced  with 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  275 

red  cuffs  and  collars,  with  white  braiding  and  district 
buttons,  blue  hats  with  white  plumes,  and  a  wide 
tricolour  sash.  They  were  armed  with  javelins. 

The  uniform  of  the  Fernig  corps  was  a  white  tunic 
with  breeches,  waistcoat,  collar  and  cuffs  of  various 
colours,  according  to  the  division.  The  breeches  were 
slashed  a  la  Portugaise,  and  a  brass  helmet  and  flowing 
plume  completed  the  equipment.  These  women  cut 
their  hair  short  in  order  to  obviate  the  necessity  of 
dressing  it  in  a  manner  which  might  cause  them  to 
look  conspicuous. 

A  manifesto  was  issued  by  the  women  of  Maubeuge 
to  the  effect  that  they  were  ready  to  fight.  "  At  the 
moment  when  the  country  appears  to  be  menaced  by 
a  cruel  war,"  it  ran,  "  instigated  by  traitors  who  push 
their  rascality  to  the  extent  of  themselves  bearing  arms 
against  a  kingdom  of  which  by  rights  they  should  be 
the  supporters,  we  hasten  to  make  known  to  you  our 
patriotism  and  our  devotion  to  the  country.  We  are 
determined  to  spill  the  last  drop  of  our  blood  rather 
than  to  cringe  under  the  yoke  of  tyrants  and  despots." 
Their  offer  was  not  received  with  unmixed  approval. 
Grateful  France  thanked  the  intrepid  citoyennes  for 
their  sublime  devotion,  and,  since  she  relied  with  confi- 
dence on  the  worth  and  valour  of  her  brave  soldiers, 
she  advised  the  women  to  use  their  talents  in  deeds 
of  a  less  warlike  nature.  At  Lalinde  the  women  swore 
to  shed  their  blood  drop  by  drop  rather  than  live 
under  the  yoke  of  tyranny.  Patriots  of  the  fair  sex 
at  Limoges  wished  to  form  a  battalion  which  might 
share  the  work  of  the  National  Guard. 

The  women  of  Vic-en-Bigorre  sent  an  appeal  to  the 


276  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

National  Assembly,  saying  that  they  desired  to  be 
regarded  as  an  example  of  all  the  Christian,  civil,  and 
patriotic  virtues,  especially  with  reference  to  carrying 
out  the  laws.  They  had  armed  themselves  in  order 
to  serve,  in  case  of  need,  as  auxiliary  troops  to  the 
National  Guard,  thereby  demonstrating  to  the  country 
that  their  courage  would  not  be  found  wanting  as  a 
last  resource.  Their  flag  was  elaborately  embroidered 
with  a  device  on  one  side,  4<J'£leve  un  defenseur  a 
la  Patrie,"  representing  a  mother  sacrificing  her  son 
on  the  altar  of  the  country,  and  on  the  other  "  L'hy- 
men  et  1'amour  couronnent  le  guerrier  citoyen,"  a 
young  citoyenne  crowning  a  hero  before  the  altar  of 
Hymen. 

The  women  of  Harcourt  offered  a  flag  to  the 
National  Guard  bearing  the  motto  c'  Libres  ou  mourir." 

On  January  3ist,  1792,  the  women  citizens  of  the 
town  of  Belves  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  president 
of  the  Legislative  Assembly  a  declaration  in  which 
they  swore  to  consecrate  their  lives  in  upholding  the 
Constitution,  and  to  take  up  arms,  either  for  the  de- 
fence of  their  homes  or  to  fight  side  by  side  with  their 
sons  and  brothers. 

As  early  as  January  1789,  owing  to  riots  at  Grenoble, 
the  women  of  that  town  wrote  to  the  King  to  say  that 
they  objected  to  bring  children  into  the  world  if  they 
were  destined  to  live  in  a  country  overridden  by 
despotism.  Battalions  of  these  women  were  formed, 
and  they  shouldered  their  pikes  with  a  bold  air  that 
was  truly  edifying. 

The  women  of  Versailles  were  enthusiastic  warriors. 
In  white  uniforms  with  tricoloured  sashes,  they  formed 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  277 

a  deputation  which  marched  into  the  Assembly  Hall 
in  August  1792,  and  announced  that  they  were  pre- 
pared to  guard  the  town  while  the  men  went  to  the 
front.  At  Rambervillers  the  women  swore  to  do 
battle  beside  their  sons  and  brothers  on  the  ramparts. 
Two  hundred  women  enlisted  in  the  Legion  Juste 
at  Frie,  and  on  August  9th,  1790,  elected  a  certain 
Mme  Feurier  to  be  their  colonel.  A  few  days  later, 
on  the  occasion  of  the  consecration  of  their  flag,  mass 
was  said,  then  there  was  a  review,  a  banquet,  and  a 
ball.  So  great  was  the  enthusiasm  that  "  the  troop 
of  both  sexes  embraced  to  the  sound  of  repeated 


vivats." 


When  the  National  Guard  was  reorganised  at 
Perouges  in  the  spring  of  1793,  it  was  found  that 
over  one  hundred  women  were  serving  in  the  ranks. 
Others  were  enrolled  in  various  sections  of  the  re- 
publican armies,  and  some  women  certainly  saw  active 
service,  but  no  body  of  citoyennes  had  the  glory  of 
facing  the  enemy's  fire.  One  at  least  took  the  command 
of  soldiers.  At  Mormant  a  Mme  de  Moulins  wrote 
to  the  volunteers,  "  My  nephew,  who  is  an  aristocrat, 
has  refused  the  honour  of  acting  as  colonel  of  your 
National  Guard,  so  I  propose  to  command  you  myself." 
Her  bold  plan  was  hailed  with  enthusiasm.  A  fine 
military  reception  was  given  to  the  lady  in  question, 
and  she  was  so  deeply  touched  by  this  exhibition  of 
feeling  that  she  displayed  the  national  cockade  and 
armed  herself  with  a  sabre. 

Theroigne  knew  how  to  appreciate  the  spirit  which 
animated  these  women.  All  over  the  country  they 
were  ready  to  defend  themselves.  Their  warlike  atti- 


27 8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

tude  was  expressed  very  clearly  indeed  in  a  letter 
printed  on  February  2yth,  and  distributed  at  the  insti- 
gation of  Tallien  in  his  capacity  of  president  of  La 
Societ£  Fraternelle  seante  aux  Minimes.  Theroigne 
was  a  member  of  this  society,  and  made  one  of  her 
most  telling  speeches  on  presenting  the  members  with 
a  flag.  She  thoroughly  approved  of  the  sentiments 
contained  in  the  letter  which  appeared  immediately 
after  her  triumph  at  the  Jacobins,  and  to  which  over 
three  hundred  signatures  were  appended. 

The  appeal  was  made  to  the  Legislative  Assembly. 

u  Legislators,"  it  began,  "  women  patriots  present 
themselves  before  you  to  claim  their  individual  right 
to  defend  life  and  liberty. 

"  Everything  warns  us  of  a  speedy  and  violent  up- 
heaval. Our  fathers,  our  husbands,  and  our  brothers 
may  perhaps  fall  victims  to  the  fury  of  our  enemies. 
Is  there  any  one  who  can  hinder  us  from  the  privilege 
of  avenging  them  or  of  dying  beside  them  ? 

"  We  are  women  citizens,  and  can  never  be  indifferent 
to  the  fate  of  our  country.  Your  predecessors  en- 
trusted the  Constitution  to  our  hands  as  well  as  yours. 
How  can  we  guard  this  trust  unless  we  have  arms 
to  defend  it  against  the  onslaught  of  enemies  ?  Legis- 
lators, we  require  arms,  and  we  come  to  obtain  per- 
mission to  carry  them.  Our  want  of  physical  strength 
is  no  obstacle  ;  courage  and  intrepidity  will  stand  us 
in  good  stead;  the  love  of  our  country  and  hatred 
of  tyrants  will  make  it  easy  for  us  to  brave  every 
danger.  Do  not  suppose  that  it  is  our  intention  to 
abandon  the  care  of  our  family  and  household,  always 
dear  to  our  affections,  for  the  sake  of  rushing  out  to 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  279 

meet  the  enemy.  No,  gentlemen,  we  only  ask  to  be 
in  a  position  to  defend  ourselves.  You  dare  not,  and 
society  cannot,  refuse  us  this  right  which  nature  has 
given  us  ;  unless  it  be  claimed  that  the  Declaration  of 
the  Rights  of  Man  has  no  application  to  women,  and 
that  the  latter  ought  to  allow  themselves  to  be 
slaughtered  like  sheep  without  any  attempt  at  a 
struggle. 

<c  Does  any  one  believe  that  the  tyrants  would  spare 
us?  No,  they  will  remember  the  5th  and  6th  of 
October,  1789. 

"  But  people  tell  us  that  men  are  armed  for  the 
purpose  of  defending  us.  That  may  be  so  ;  never- 
theless, we  reply,  why  deprive  us  of  the  power  to 
co-operate  in  this  defence,  and  of  the  pleasure  of 
prolonging  their  days  at  the  cost  of  ours  ?  Do  they 
know  for  certain  the  number  and  strength  of  our 
hidden  enemy  ?  Will  there  be  only  one  fight  ?  Are 
our  lives  worth  more  than  theirs  ?  And  are  not  our 
children  as  much  orphans  when  they  lose  their  father 
as  when  they  lose  their  mother  ?  Then  why  not  make 
use  of  all  the  sources  of  civicism  and  purest  zeal  in 
order  to  dismay  aristocracy  and  overthrow  despotism — 
zeal  which  level-headed  men  may  call  fanaticism  and 
exaggeration,  but  which  is  the  only  natural  outcome 
of  hearts  burning  with  love  for  the  public  welfare? 

"  Doubtless,  gentlemen,  most  perfect  success  will 
crown  the  justice  of  our  cause.  In  that  case  we 
should  enjoy  the  delight  of  having  contributed  to 
the  victory.  But  if  by  the  cunning  of  our  enemies, 
or  through  the  treason  of  any  on  our  side,  the  victory 
should  remain  in  the  hands  of  the  unjust,  would  it 


280  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

not  be  cruel  to  condemn  us  to  await  a  shameful  death 
in  our  houses,  and  all  the  horrors  which  would  precede 
it,  or,  worse  still,  the  doom  of  surviving  all  we  hold 
most  dear — our  family  and  our  liberty  ? 

"  Gentlemen,  you  cannot  contemplate  such  possi- 
bilities unmoved  ;  and  if,  for  reasons  we  cannot  grasp, 
you  refuse  our  just  demands,  the  women  whom  you 
have  raised  to  the  rank  of  citoyennes  by  giving  this 
title  to  their  husbands,  the  women  who  have  enjoyed 
the  first-fruits  of  liberty,  who  have  conceived  the  hope 
of  bringing  into  the  world  free  men,  and  who  have 
sworn  to  live  free  or  to  die,  these  women  will  never 
consent  to  give  birth  to  slaves;  they  will  die  sooner, 
and  to  keep  their  oath  a  poignard  thrust  in  their 
bosom  shall  deliver  them  from  the  degradation  of 
slavery.  They  will  die  thus,  regretting  not  life,  but 
the  uselessness  of  their  death  ;  regretting  that  they 
were  prevented  from  dipping  their  fingers  in  the 
impure  blood  of  an  enemy  to  the  country  and  avenging 
some  of  their  fellow  citizens." 

And  then  followed  their  demands  : 

"  We  hope  to  obtain  from  your  justice  and  equity, 
firstly,  permission  to  procure  pikes,  pistols,  and  sabres, 
even  guns,  for  those  who  have  strength  to  use  them, 
in  accordance  with  and  submission  to  the  police  regula- 
tions ;  secondly,  to  assemble  on  fete  days  and  Sundays  in 
the  Champ  de  la  Federation,  or  other  convenient  place, 
to  exercise  and  manoeuvre  with  the  said  arms;  and 
thirdly,  to  name  as  our  commanders  certain  former 
French  Guards,  always  in  conformity  to  the  regula- 
tions prescribed  by  the  wisdom  of  the  mayor  for  good 
behaviour  and  public  tranquillity." 


To  Arms!   To  Arms!  281 

Such,  then,  was  the  temper  of  the  women,  and  all 
the  early  months  of  1792  this  warlike  spirit  seethed 
in  Paris.  Everything  possible  was  done  to  obtain 
arms.  They  collected  money  for  the  fabrication  of 
pikes,  and  numbers  of  these  weapons  were  made 
specially  for  women.  One  may  be  seen  at  the  Car- 
navalet  to-day,  beautifully  finished,  light,  yet  strong, 
and  the  handle  adorned  with  a  design  of  laurel  branches 
and  a  Phrygian  bonnet. 

Naturally  enough  the  royalist  journals  expressed 
their  views  on  the  matter,  and  pointed  out  Theroigne's 
aims  with  a  satirical  finger. 

"A  superb  deputation  of  women  arrived  armed 
with  pikes,"  declared  the  Sabbat s  Jacobites,  describing 
the  day  Theroigne  arrived  to  read  her  statement  before 
the  club.  c<  They  opened  the  discussion  by  warning  the 
honourable  members  of  the  house  that  their  visit 
was  only  a  rehearsal  of  a  farce  which  they  intended  to 
perform  the  following  day  in  the  National  Assembly. 
The  colonel  of  this  feminine  squadron  was  the  incom- 
parable Mile  Theroigne  de  Mericourt.  This  new 
Penthesilea,  having  made  the  most  charming  remarks 
to  all  the  members  of  the  sublime  Aeropagus,  closed 
her  discourse  with  lines  sung  to  the  air  '  Ne  v'la-t'il 
pas  que  j'aime  '  : 

II  faut  pour  etre  utile  enfin 
A  notre  Republique 
Que  chaque  femme  ait  a  la  main 
Une  superbe  pique." 

The  Petit  Gauthier  of  March  I4th  said:  "The 
martial  fire  which  the  Bourrique  des  Jacobins,  Mile 
Theroigne,  put  into  her  command  last  Sunday  of 


282  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  patriotic  manoeuvres  of  those  ladies  who  are  ready 
to  shed  their  blood  in  order  to  keep  the  Assembly 
in  its  place,  was  so  active  that  the  moustaches  of 
the  said  lady  came  unfastened  and  were  lost." 

But  such  poor  jesting  as  this  was  not  likely  to 
damp  the  ardour  of  Theroigne  herself  nor  of  the 
numbers  who  sympathised  with  her. 

The  Patriote  Franfais  praised  her  warlike  language, 
and  pointed  out  that  her  leaning  was  towards  the 
Brissotins,  as  opposed  to  the  Robespierrists.  On 
the  question  of  war  she  was  prepared  to  side  with 
those  who  were  presently  known  as  the  Girondins. 
But  her  great  wish  was,  as  already  stated,  to  do  for 
Paris  what  others  had  done  for  the  provinces,  namely, 
to  organise  a  battalion  of  women  soldiers. 

A  reference  to  her  scheme  appeared  in  an  article  on 
pikes  in  Les  Revolutions  de  Paris,  dated  February  i8th: 
"On  July  I4th  next,"  it  explained,  "  twenty-five 
millions  of  pikes  will  exist  in  France.  In  imitation 
of  our  early  ancestors,  who  never  assembled  in  the 
Champ  de  Mars  without  being  armed  with  lance  and 
shield,  twelve  million  citizens  able  to  bear  arms  and 
to  carry  a  pike  will  gather  on  the  Champ  de  la 
Federation.  Pikes,  however,  are  forbidden  to  women  ; 
let  it  not  displease  the  famous  Theroigne  and  the 
phalanx  of  Amazons  that  she  proposes  to  establish  and 
to  command  !  " 

Apart  from  drilling  and  manoeuvring,  there  was 
enough  occupation  for  the  eager  women.  Petitions, 
discourses,  presentation  of  flags,  and  the  acquirement  of 
pikes  were  the  chief  signs  of  activity  at  this  time. 
A  tricoloured  flag  of  Liberty  and  two  pikes  were 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  283 

presented  by  the  affiliated  citoyennes  to  the  Soci£t6  des 
Cordeliers  at  their  sitting  of  Sunday,  March  iith. 
The  presentation  was  made  with  the  usual  speech. 
"  The  women  who  bring  you  the  flag  of  Liberty/' 
said  the  spokeswoman,  *c  know  well  how  to  speak  the 
language  of  freedom.  Though  our  arms  may  be  too 
feeble  to  defend  it,  at  least  our  hearts'  desire  is  to 
inspire  you  with  sentiments  no  less  worthy  of  a 
Pompey  or  a  Brutus.  For  long  enough  you  have 
rotted  in  the  degradation  of  servitude.  The  hour  has 
struck.  Arise  !  " — with  much  more  to  the  same 
theatrical  effect. 

A  reply  was  made  by  Lebois,  president  of  the 
Societ6  des  Amis  des  Droits  de  1'Homme. 

"GENEROUS  CITOYENNES,"  it  ran, 

<cThe  Society  of  the  Friends  of  the  Rights 
of  Man  receives  with  the  deepest  gratitude  the  tri- 
colour flag  which  you  have  presented,  accompanied  by 
two  pikes.  Beneath  this  august  emblem  of  liberty, 
it  swears  to  march  towards  victory,  for  victory  is  certain 
when  one  fights  for  the  safety  of  the  country,  and 
under  the  eyes  of  wives  and  sisters.  You  have  doubled 
our  courage,  you  will  share  our  triumphs. 

"  The  gift  you  have  made  to  us  will  never  perish. 
Your  standard  will  float  in  the  enclosure  of  our 
assemblies  like  a  living  gauge  of  your  civic  virtues 
and  of  the  fraternity  which  unites  us." 

Only  a  few  days  later  Theroigne  was  the  chief  figure 
in  a  similar  ceremony. 

She  made  a  stirring  appeal  to  women  to  emancipate 


284  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

themselves.  At  that  day  most  women's  ideas,  especially 
on  religion  and  politics,  were  coloured  by  those  of 
husband  or  father.  In  her  struggle  for  liberty  Th£roigne 
applied  particularly  to  women  for  help.  She  desired 
them  to  realise  for  themselves  the  duties  of  citizenship 
and  their  civil  rights.  She  desired  above  all  that  her 
sex,  without  neglecting  their  duties  in  the  home,  should 
have  a  share  in  the  direction  of  the  affairs  of  the 
country.  Her  remarks  were  delivered  in  the  declama- 
tory style  of  the  day,  and  show  signs  of  an  incomplete 
education,  besides  being  reminiscent  of  certain  authors 
— for  instance,  de  Mably,  who  based  his  ideals  on  the 
political  civilisation  of  Greece  and  the  Republic  of 
Sparta, — but  they  display  her  views  and  aspirations  in  a 
manner  both  brilliant  and  intelligent,  and  throw  a  great 
deal  of  light  on  the  feminist  movement  of  that  day. 

The  discourse  was  delivered  to  the  Societe  Frater- 
nelle  des  Minimes  on  March  25th,  1792,  the  fourth 
year  of  liberty,  by  Mile  Theroigne,  in  presenting  a 
flag  to  the  citoyennes  of  the  Faubourg  Saint-Antoine. 

The  hall  was  crowded,  hundreds  of  women  were 
there,  excited  and  gesticulating  ;  the  tense  expectancy 
which  is  always  startling  among  French  audiences  was 
tuned  up  to  breaking  pitch.  Of  a  sudden  there 
was  silence,  and  a  thousand  eyes  were  turned  upon 
the  slim  figure  of  the  speaker  as  she  rose  from  her 
seat  on  the  platform. 

<c  Citoyennes,"  she  began,  "  although  we  have  gained 
victories,  although  a  tyrant  is  dead,  a  treacherous 
minister  has  been  accused  of  high  treason,  and  the 
Assembly  exhibits  an  energy  which  revives  the  hope 
of  the  Friends  of  the  Country,  we  are,  nevertheless, 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  285 

still,  and  always,  in  danger.  Without  entering  into 
the  details  that  are  already  known  to  you,  I  will  only 
repeat  those  things  which  I  believe  cannot  be  recalled 
to  your  memory  too  often,  in  order  to  beg  that  you 
may  reflect  seriously  upon  the  present  situation.  Do 
not  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  the  torches  of  civil  war 
are  ready  to  be  lighted,  that  the  standard  of  the 
counter-revolution  is  displayed  in  various  parts  of 
the  empire  ;  that  it  is  visible  everywhere,  but  more 
especially  in  Paris  ;  that  paid  scoundrels  have  formed 
a  plan  with  regard  to  the  internal  disunion  of  the 
country,  which  they  are  following  up  with  the  utmost 
determination,  with  a  view  to  organising  parties  who 
will  prove  fatal  to  liberty  if  your  vigilance  does  not 
defeat  the  criminal  plots  concocted  by  our  enemies. 

"  Citoyennes,  do  not  let  us  forget  that  we  owe  our- 
selves wholly  to  our  country  ;  that  it  is  our  most 
sacred  duty  to  tighten  our  bonds  of  union  and  con- 
fraternity, and  to  spread  the  principles  of  steadfast 
energy,  in  order  to  prepare  ourselves  with  as  much 
wisdom  as  courage  to  repulse  the  attacks  of  our 
enemies. 

"  Citoyennes,  we  can  destroy  the  thread  of  these 
intrigues  by  generous  devotion.  To  arms !  To  arms  ! 
Nature,  as  well  as  the  law,  gives  us  the  right  to  arm. 
Let  us  show  men  that  we  are  not  inferior  to  them 
either  in  virtue  or  in  courage.  Let  us  show  Europe 
that  Frenchwomen  know  their  rights,  and  are  amongst 
the  most  enlightened  of  eighteenth-century  people,  in 
despising  those  who  are  prejudiced,  who,  because  they 
are  prejudiced,  are  absurd,  and  often  immoral,  in  that 
they  make  a  crime  of  virtue. 


286  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

"  The  attempts  which  the  executive  power  can  make 
in  the  future  to  regain  public  confidence  will  be 
nothing  more  than  dangerous  traps  which  we  must 
distrust  :  whilst  our  manners  are  not  in  accordance 
with  our  laws,  authority  will  not  lose  the  hope  of 
profiting  by  our  vices  to  put  us  in  chains.  It  is  quite 
obvious,  and  you  may  expect  it,  that  they  will  put  the 
loud  talkers  and  scoundrelly  pamphleteers  forward  in 
order  to  try  and  shake  our  purpose,  in  order  to  employ 
the  weapons  of  ridicule,  of  calumny,  and  all  the  lowest 
methods  which  are  usually  employed  by  vile  people  to 
smother  the  transports  of  patriotism  in  feeble  souls. 

"  But,  Frenchwomen,  since  the  progress  of  enlight- 
enment calls  upon  you  to  reflect,  compare  what  we 
are  now  with  that  which  we  ought  to  be  in  the  social 
order.  To  understand  our  rights  and  our  duties  it 
is  necessary  to  take  reason  as  our  arbiter,  and  to  be 
guided  by  her  ;  thus  we  shall  distinguish  the  just  from 
the  unjust.  What  then  can  be  the  consideration  which 
could  stay  us,  which  could  hinder  us  from  doing  the 
right  thing  when  it  is  evident  that  we  can  do  it  and 
that  we  ought  to  do  it  ?  We  will  arm  because  it  is 
reasonable  that  we  should  prepare  to  defend  our  rights, 
our  hearths  and  homes,  and  that  we  should  not  do 
justice  to  ourselves  and  our  responsibilities  to  the 
country  if  the  pusillanimity  which  we  have  acquired 
in  bondage  should  still  have  sufficient  sway  over  us 
to  prevent  us  from  doubling  our  powers.  According 
to  all  accounts,  it  is  impossible  to  doubt  that  the 
example  of  our  devotion  will  awaken  in  the  souls  of 
men  public  virtues  and  an  overwhelming  passionate 
love  of  glory  and  of  the  country.  We  shall  thus 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  287 

maintain  liberty  by  emulation,  and  the  social  perfection 
resulting  from  this  fortunate  concurrence. 

"  Frenchwomen,  I  say  to  you  once  more,  let  us 
rise  to  the  utmost  height  of  our  destiny,  let  us  break 
our  chains ;  it  is  time  at  last  that  women  should  throw 
aside  their  shameful  inactivity  in  which  ignorance, 
pride,  and  the  injustice  of  men  have  kept  them  bound 
for  so  long.  Let  us  return  to  the  time  when  our 
mothers,  the  Gauls  and  the  proud  Germans,  spoke  in 
the  public  Assemblies,  and  fought  beside  their  husbands 
to  repulse  the  enemies  of  Liberty.  Frenchwomen, 
the  same  blood  runs  in  our  veins  to-day.  What  we 
did  at  Beauvais,  at  Versailles  on  October  5th  and  6th, 
and  in  several  other  important  and  decisive  circum- 
stances, proves  that  we  are  not  strangers  to  magnanimous 
sentiments.  Let  us  recover  our  energy,  then  ;  for  if 
we  desire  to  preserve  our  liberty  it  is  needful  that 
we  should  prepare  to  do  things  the  most  sublime. 
At  the  present  moment  such  things  appear  extra- 
ordinary, perhaps  even  impossible,  owing  to  the 
corruption  of  manners,  but  shortly,  when  enlighten- 
ment and  the  progress  of  public  spirit  have  had  an 
effect,  they  will  become  simple  and  easy. 

"  Citoyennes,  why  do  we  not  enter  into  rivalry 
with  men  ?  They  pretend  that  they  alone  have  rights 
to  glory.  No,  indeed  no.  .  .  .  We  also  wish  to 
merit  a  civic  crown,  to  sue  for  the  honour  of  dying 
for  a  liberty  which  is  perhaps  dearer  to  us  than  to 
them,  because  the  effects  of  despotism  weigh  still  more 
heavily  on  our  heads  than  on  theirs. 

"  Yes,  generous  Citoyennes,  all  of  you  who  hear 
me,  let  us  arm,  let  us  go  and  exercise  two  or  three 


288  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

times  a  week  in  the  Champs  Elysees,  or  on  the 
Champ  de  la  Federation,  let  us  start  a  list  of  French 
Amazons  upon  which  all  those  who  really  love  their 
country  will  come  and  enrol  their  names.  We  will 
meet  again  immediately  to  discuss  means  for  organising 
a  battalion  on  the  lines  of  that  of  the  pupils  of  the 
Patrie,  of  the  Veillards,  or  of  the  sacred  Battalion 
of  Thebes.  In  conclusion,  may  I  be  allowed  to  offer 
a  tricolour  flag  to  the  Citoyennes  of  the  Faubourg 
Saint-Antoine."  Amidst  a  thunder  of  applause  she 
sat  down. 

It  was  arranged  that  the  first  Assembly  of  the 
Citoyennes  would  be  held  on  Monday,  April  2nd, 
at  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  in  the  hall  of  the 
Societe  Fraternelle  des  Minimes,  Place  Royale. 

Theroigne's  military  plans,  although  not  entirely 
her  own  idea,  were  not  derived  directly  from  any 
special  individual.  Paris  was  in  a  state  of  intense 
anxiety  and  ferment.  The  people  were  arming  against 
internal  enemies,  and  war  from  without  appeared  to 
be  inevitable.  From  the  beginning  of  February  the 
nation  had  accepted  the  situation.  From  the  begin- 
ning of  March,  which  opened  with  the  decision  of 
Prussia  to  join  Austria  in  invading  France,  and  also 
by  the  death  of  Emperor  Leopold,  which  retarded  the 
actual  movement,  the  suspense  had  grown  more  and 
more  acute.  It  was  felt  that  no  stone  should  be  left 
unturned,  and  Theroigne  thought  she  recognised 
available  material  for  use  in  defending  the  country 
among  the  earnest  and  eager  women.  But  the  ways 
of  a  capital  are  different  from  those  of  provincial  cities  ; 
and  in  exploiting  her  scheme  for  mobilising  legions 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  289 

of  women  Theroigne  found  herself  face  to  face  with 
various  difficulties  which  in  the  end  proved  insur- 
mountable. She  had  failed  on  the  purely  political 
side  when  endeavouring  to  organise  her  Club  des 
Amis  de  Loi  ;  her  attempt  to  raise  a  club  of  armed 
women  was  no  more  successful.  In  the  early  part 
of  April  she  worked  hard  to  enrol  members  in  the 
Faubourg  Saint-Antoine,  but  on  the  I2th  of  the 
month  her  enthusiasm  received  a  severe  check.  She 
made  herself  unpopular  among  the  very  individuals 
she  was  trying  to  help.  People  at  this  time  were 
growing  fickle,  and  suspicious  of  their  best  friends. 
The  hero  of  to-day  was  the  outcast  of  to-morrow. 
Almost  every  hour  brought  a  new  personality  into 
the  limelight,  and  relegated  one  who  had  been  a 
favourite  to  the  shadows  in  the  background.  New 
parties  were  springing  up,  new  and  ever  more  daring 
opinions  were  being  expressed,  and  he  who  did  not 
venture  to  the  extreme  of  rabid  republicanism  was 
in  danger  of  being  left  behind  in  the  race,  or,  worse 
still,  of  being  trampled  to  death  by  those  who  were 
rushing  pell-mell  to  the  limit. 

Theroigne's  adventure  might  have  proved  very 
serious.  As  it  was  she  received  a  shock  from  which 
it  took  her  some  time  to  recover.  She  was  busy 
with  her  recruiting  work  in  the  Faubourg  Saint- 
Antoine  when  the  crowd  set  upon  her  and  handled 
her  roughly.  She  owed  her  safety  to  the  intervention 
of  the  Commissioners  of  the  Section  of  the  Enfants- 
Trouves,  who,  after  making  her  promise  not  to  return 
and  cause  further  disturbances  in  that  quarter,  sent  her 
away  under  an  escort  of  the  National  Guard. 


290  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

"All  the  world  has  heard  that  the  infamous  The- 
roigne  escaped  with  no  little  difficulty  last  Thursday 
from  the  chastisement  which  the  people  of  the  Fau- 
bourg Saint-Antoine  wished  to  inflict  upon  her/'  said 
the  Folies  d'un  Mois  with  reference  to  this  affair. 
"The  evening  before  she  had  been  proposing  that 
the  women  should  arm  themselves  with  the  pikes 
that  men  refused  to  carry.  She  returned  accompanied 
by  prostitutes.  No  sooner  was  she  recognised  than 
the  cry  was  raised :  { Here  she  comes ;  let's  beat 
her  ! '  She  took  refuge  from  her  persecutors  in  the 
Church  of  the  Enfants-Trouves,  where  she  found  the 
Commissioners  of  the  Section,  who  deliberated  whether 
they  should  send  her  before  the  magistrate,  as  they 
ought  to  have  done.  In  the  end,  however,  they 
dismissed  her  without  any  punishment,  and,  to  save 
her  from  the  indignation  of  those  who  were  pursuing 
her,  they  had  her  escorted  to  a  carriage  by  a  dozen 
National  Guards." 

She  was  fortunate  in  her  escape.  The  time  was 
coming  when  she  would  not  be  let  off  so  easily. 

But  the  matter  did  not  rest  there.  On  the  I3th 
the  Societe  des  Defenseurs  des  Droits  de  1'Homme 
et  Ennemis  du  Despotisme,  which  held  its  meetings 
in  the  Faubourg  Saint-Antoine,  sent  a  deputation  to 
denounce  Mile  Theroigne  to  the  Jacobins  Society. 

The  deputation  accused  her  of  having  caused 
troublesome  excitement  in  the  Faubourg  Saint-An- 
toine, because  she  wished  to  assemble  the  women  of 
that  quarter  three  times  a  week  and  form  a  club  ; 
and  had  invited  them  to  a  feast  or  civic  banquet, 
and  had  made  use  of  the  names  of  MM.  Robespierre, 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  291 

Collot  d'Herbois,  and  Santerre,  probably  without 
authorisation.  The  deputation,  moreover,  accused 
Theroigne  of  having  imposed  upon  the  women  of 
this  quarter  by  showing  them  a  list  of  supposed 
signatures  for  this  civic  feast,  the  signature  of  Mme 
Santerre  being  recognised  by  the  commissioners  as 
in  the  handwriting  of  Mile  Theroigne. 

In  reply  to  a  question  put  to  Robespierre  as  to 
the  use  of  his  name  in  this  connection,  he  declared 
that  he  had  never  had  any  special  dealings  with 
Mile  Theroigne.  A  year  earlier  she  had  denied  a 
personal  acquaintance  with  him.  She  knew  him  by 
sight,  she  says  in  her  "  Confessions "  ;  but  then,  who 
did  not  ?  But  she  had  never  spoken  to  him.  She 
would  have  regarded  his  acquaintance  as  an  honour. 

M.  Santerre,  when  approached  on  the  same  subject, 
was  more  inclined  to  defend  her.  He  announced 
that  he  had  heard  rumours  of  disturbances  in  the 
Faubourg  Saint-Antoine  of  which  Mile  Theroigne 
might  have  been  the  cause  without  actual  intention. 
With  regard  to  the  supposed  false  signature  of  Mme 
Santerre,  the  list  was  not  supposed  to  be  of  signatures, 
but  of  the  names  of  those  people  who  desired  to  take 
part  in  the  fete. 

Probably  the  trouble  caused  by  the  desire  on 
Theroigne's  part  to  form  a  women's  club  was  the 
fault  of  the  women  themselves.  The  filles  de  la  Pitie 
had  been  induced  to  join  the  meetings,  and  the  nuns, 
who  were  responsible  for  their  education,  made  objec- 
tion. Then  violence  had  been  resorted  to.  The  men 
of  the  quarter,  continued  Santerre,  preferred  to  find 
their  homes  in  order  when  they  came  in  from  work, 


292  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

rather  than  to  come  back  to  an  empty  house  and 
wait  for  their  wives  to  return  later  from  meetings  at 
which  they  acquired  a  spirit  the  opposite  of  gentle. 
No  doubt  they  had  looked  askance  at  meetings  which 
were  to  be  held  three  times  a  week.  "All  these 
considerations,"  he  concluded,  "  produced  the  dis- 
turbances of  which  I  have  advised  Mile  Theroigne 
to  avoid  a  repetition,  and  I  have  suggested  that  she 
would  do  well  to  renounce  her  plans.  I  have  no 
doubt  that,  after  reflecting  on  these  disturbances, 
which  she  certainly  never  meant  to  cause,  as  evil- 
intentioned  people  might  accuse  her  of  wishing  to  do, 
she  will  renounce  her  plans  of  her  own  free  will." 

What  could  unhappy  Theroigne  do?  Her  ardour 
was  considerably  damped  by  the  blow  she  had  re- 
ceived to  a  popularity  which  had  increased  by  leaps 
and  bounds  throughout  February  and  March.  She 
was  forced  to  abandon  the  idea  of  training  women 
to  take  an  active  part  in  warfare,  and  instead  she 
turned  for  solace  to  a  more  picturesque  line  of  demon- 
stration, and  joined  lustily  in  the  civic  banquets  and 
fetes  that  were  dear  to  the  hearts  of  the  people. 

That  same  evening,  March  25th,  a  large  number 
of  the  conquerors  of  the  Bastille,  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  Faubourg  Saint-Antoine,  and  the  strong  men  of 
the  Halles,  met  at  the  Halle  Neuve.  Thence  the 
guests  hastened  to  the  Champs  Elysees,  where  the 
banquet  was  to  take  place.  Bonnets  of  liberty,  carried 
on  pikes  adorned  with  the  national  colours,  preceded 
the  procession,  which  marched  to  the  sound  of  drums 
and  music.  Gaiety  and  good-fellowship  were  the  key- 
notes of  this  feast.  Patriotic  toasts  were  drunk,  and 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  293 

patriotic  songs  and  dances  formed  a  feature  of  the 
evening.  Petion  was  there  and  Saint-Huruge. 

This  feast  was  the  subject  of  many  jests  in  the 
royalist  press,  and  Theroigne's  presence  did  not  escape 
comment.  "  La  Theroigne  played  a  part  in  the  fete/' 
says  the  Folies  cTun  Mois.  "  She  stood  upon  the  table 
and  drank  to  the  health  of  the  patriots  of  Brabant, 
Liege,  and  all  the  universe.  A  Hercules  of  the  Halle 
called  Nicolas  was  there  dressed  in  a  bonnet-rouge, 
a  white  vest  and  breeches.  The  people  asked  him  to 
kiss  her,  and  she  permitted  it  once,  but  she  put  on 
high-and-mighty  airs  and  refused  when  all  who  were 
present  shouted  out  bis  to  encourage  Nicolas  to  begin 
again." 

The  Sabbat s  Jacobites  described  the  civic  banquet  in 
a  curious  sketch,  a  "  civic  interlude,"  entitled  "  Mile 
Theroigne's  Boudoir."  The  boudoir  itself  was  a 
wonderful  place.  "  On  a  kind  of  toilet-table  stood 
a  pot  of  vegetable  rouge,  a  poignard,  some  ringlets 
of  false  hair,  a  brace  of  pistols,  the  Almanack  du  Pere 
Gerard,  a  cap,  the  Declaration  of  the  Rights  of  Man, 
a  red  woollen  bonnet,  a  comb,  a  bottle  of  toilet 
vinegar,  a  torn  lace  fichu,  the  Chronique  de  Paris, 
and  the  Courrier  de  Gorsas"  In  one  corner  was  a 
cross  bedstead  and  mattress  ;  beside  it  lay  an  enormous 
pike,  and  a  riding-habit  of  Utrecht  velvet.  On  the 
walls  hung  pictures  of  the  taking  of  the  Bastille,  the 
death  of  Foulon  and  Berthier,  the  day  of  the  6th 
October,  the  assassination  of  Favras,  the  murders  at 
Nimes,  Montauban,  and  so  on.  Theroigne  appeared 
in  neglige  of  the  most  fascinating  kind — shoes  of  red 
morocco,  black  woollen  stockings,  blue  damask  skirt, 


294  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

a  pierrot  of  white  bazin,  a  tricoloured  fichu,  and  a 
gauze  cap  of  flame  colour  surmounted  by  a  green 
pompon.  Her  make-up  was  also  tricolour  ;  white, 
brick  red,  and  very  deep  blue.  Basire  comes  upon 
the  scene,  and  sitting  down  beside  her  takes  her  hand. 
First  he  sings  a  song.  Then  growing  emboldened, 
makes  advances  which  she  repulses,  saying  she  is  not 
in  a  playful  mood.  Thereupon  he  accuses  her  of 
loving  another. 

<c  No,  my  friend,"  she  replies,  <c  but  the  country  is 
in  danger,  and  although  I  love  you  sincerely  I  love 
the  country  still  more.  In  moments  of  crisis  surely 
I  may  be  permitted  to  forget  you  for  her  sake." 

Basire  begins  to  suspect  that  she  prefers  Chabot  to 
him,  but  she  answers  him  that  she  never  sees  the 
"  old  monk."  Both  these  men  were  her  friends,  neither 
were  her  lovers.  According  to  a  little  verse  they  were 
inseparable  companions  : 

Connaissez-vous  Monsieur  Basire? 
Connaissez-vous  Monsieur  Chabot  ? 
Chabot  vaut  bien  Monsieur  Basire 
Et  Basire  Monsieur  Chabot. 
Les  talents  de  Monsieur  Basire 
Valent  ceux  de  Monsieur  Chabot, 
Et  lorsqu'on  apper9oit  Basire 
L'instant  apres  on  voit  Chabot, 
Car  Chabot  n'est  rien  sans  Basire 
Et  Basire  rien  sans  Chabot. 

At  last  Basire  is  forced  to  believe  that  Chabot  is  not 
his  rival  in  Mile  Theroigne's  affections,  and  he  suggests 
that  he  is  deeply  jealous  of  Petion. 

To  this  Theroigne  gravely  replies :  "  I  esteem  M. 
Petion  greatly.  The  friendship  I  have  for  him  might 


To  Arms !  To  Arms !  295 

easily  have  deepened  into  love  on  Sunday,  March  25th 
of  this  year.  It  was  on  that  day  that  Messieurs  the 
Port-piques  of  the  Faubourg  Saint-Antoine  gave  a 
splendid  repast  to  Messieurs  the  Hercules  of  the 
Halles.  Jerome  Petion,  as  mayor  of  Paris,  was  at  the 
banquet.  If  you  had  seen  with  what  grace,  what  ease, 
he  replied  to  all  the  toasts  they  drank  to  him  !  He 
went  from  table  to  table  crying  '  Long  live  the  Nation  ! ' 
and  humming  the  air  'Ca  ira' — in  a  word,  the  festivities 
were  charming." 

Theroigne  had  evidently  not  mastered  the  excitement 
aroused  in  her  by  her  discourse  at  the  Societe  des 
Minimes  that  evening.  She  describes  the  baptism  of 
the  child  of  a  drummer's  wife,  when  Mme  Tremblay, 
wife  of  a  patriot  printer,  and  Mile  Calon,  the  daughter 
of  the  deputy,  officiated  at  the  font  in  the  role  of 
godmothers,  and  vin  de  Suresnes  was  used  instead  of 
holy  water.  Potion  was  the  godfather,  and  the  baby 
was  named  Petion-Nationale-Pique.  "  How  sorry  I 
was  not  to  be  chosen  as  godmother  !  "  she  cries.  "  I 
would  have  added  three  more  names  to  the  pretty  ones 
already  chosen  which  would  have  been  quite  equal 
to  them — Lanterne,  Assignat,  and  Bonnet-rouge." 

Basire's  jealousy  is  by  no  means  assuaged  by  this 
story.  "Then  I  see,"  he  says,  "  that  M.  P6tion  has 
really  taken  my  place  in  your  heart." 

"  By  no  means,"  replies  the  adroit  Theroigne. 
<c  I  love  M.  Petion  for  his  civic  virtues,  his  patriotism, 
his  devotion  to  public  affairs,  his  talent  for  denuncia- 
tion, his  earnestness  at  the  Jacobins.  In  a  word,  it 
is  the  nation  that  I  love  in  him,  for  he  is  the  most 
worthy  representative  of  it ;  but  you  shall  be  none 


296  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  less  my  lover,  I  swear  it  by  my  deeds  of 
October  6th." 

And  together  they  go  off  amicably  to  denounce 
the  aristocrats  at  the  Jacobins. 

The  same  paper,  the  Sabbats  Jacobites,  satirised  the 
arrangements  made  for  the  fete  of  the  Chateauvieux, 
describing  how  a  group  of  three  thousand  women 
were  to  be  chosen  from  the  habituees  of  the  Palais 
Royal,  the  Dames  des  Halles,  and  the  Societ6 
Fraternelle.  They  were  to  be  dressed  in  red  ribbons 
and  red  pierrot  costumes,  bearing  a  pike  in  one  hand 
and  a  pamphlet  containing  extracts  from  "  The  Rights 
of  Man  "  in  the  other.  Miles  Theroigne  and  Calon 
were  to  be  at  the  head  of  the  procession.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  Theroigne  took  a  very  active  part  in  preparing 
for  this  fete  to  the  Swiss,  which  was  intended  to  revive 
public  spirit.  She  had  been  busy  with  the  organisation 
from  the  beginning  of  the  month. 

On  March  ist  Gorsas  wrote  to  Palloy  saying  : 
"  Mile  Theroigne  wishes  to  see  you  and  talk  with 
you,  comrade.  Please  fix  a  day  and  hour  when  I 
can  accompany  her  to  your  house.  She  particularly 
wishes  to  speak  to  you  of  a  proposed  fete  for 
Chateauvieux." 

Three  days  later  the  question  came  up  at  the 
Jacobins,  Theroigne  being  spokeswoman  for  a  depu- 
tation sent  by  the  Societe  Fraternelle  to  propose  a 
plan  for  a  patriotic  feast,  "  in  order  to  tune  up 
public  spirit  to  its  highest  pitch,"  as  she  aptly  expressed 
it.  She  gave  such  a  long  description  of  the  proposed 
fete  that  Bronsonnet  interrupted  her,  saying  that 
Louis  XIV.  had  been  in  the  habit  of  giving  fetes 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  297 

when  he  had  forced  other  nations  into  submission, 
and  that  it  was  unthinkable  that  any  one  should 
propose  similar  measures  in  France  now  she  was 
free,  and  at  a  moment  when  she  might  be  forced  to 
declare  war  against  several  nations. 

Theroigne  replied  that  what  she  proposed  was  not 
so  much  a  fete  as  a  ceremony,  and  she  went  on  reading. 
Thuriot,  the  President,  did  not  discourage  her,  and 
in  the  end  Bronsonnet  and  Restaut  were  commissioned 
to  examine  into  the  plans  submitted. 

Throughout  the  month  controversy  raged  hotly 
round  the  forty  unfortunate  Swiss  of  Chateauvieux 
who  had  been  condemned  to  the  galleys  and  sent  to 
Brest  for  revolt,  murder,  and  pillage  at  Nancy  in 
August  1790.  Opinion  was  divided  as  to  whether 
they  were  heroes  or  outcasts,  as  to  whether  they  were 
to  be  feted  or  reviled.  Collot  d'Herbois  pleaded  for 
them,  crying  himself  hoarse.  Roucher  opposed  him, 
and  insults  were  hurled  from  one  to  the  other,  the 
latter  accusing  the  former  of  <c  rushing  at  him  as 
though  to  strike  him  with  the  oar  the  Swiss  had 
brought  him  from  the  galleys."  Marie-Joseph  Ch6nier 
associated  himself  with  Theroigne  in  championing  the 
cause  of  the  soldiers  ;  Andre  Chenier,  on  the  other 
hand,  wrote  immortal  verses  denouncing  the  affair. 

"  This  fete  that  is  preparing  for  these  soldiers  is 
attributed  to  enthusiasm,"  he  declared.  "For  my 
part  I  confess  I  do  not  perceive  this  enthusiasm.  .  .  . 
How,  then,  is  the  honour  of  Paris  interested  in  feting 
the  murderers  of  our  brothers  ?  ...  In  a  city  that 
respected  itself  such  a  fete  would  be  met  by  silence 
and  solitude,  the  streets  or  public  places  would  be 


298  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

abandoned,  the  houses  shut  up,  the  windows  deserted, 
and  the  flight  and  scorn  of  the  passer-by  would  tell 
history  what  share  honest  and  well-disposed  men  took 
in  this  scandalous  and  bacchanalian  procession." 

Dupont  de  Nemours  assailed  Potion  on  the  same 
subject.  The  walls  of  Paris  were  covered  with  placards 
for  and  against.  The  discussion  was  hottest  in  the 
Jacobins  Club.  The  press  devoted  columns  to  it  ; 
the  masses,  adoring  everything  theatrical  and  emphatic, 
were  on  the  side  of  the  celebrations.  But  Th£roigne 
worked  on  steadily  against  all  opposition,  and  on  that 
same  fateful  March  25th  presented  a  petition,  jointly 
with  Marie- Joseph  Ch£nier  and  David  the  painter,  to 
the  Council  General  of  the  Commune. 

"  M.  THE  MAYOR  AND  GENTLEMEN,"  it  runs, 

"  In  a  few  days  from  now  we  shall  have 
amongst  us  the  soldiers  of  the  Chateauvieux.  Their 
irons  have  fallen  off  at  the  vote  of  the  Assembly  ;  their 
persecutors  have  escaped  the  penalty  of  the  law,  but 
not  the  stain  of  ignominy.  Soon  these  generous  soldiers 
will  see  again  the  Champ  de  Mars,  where  their  resistance 
to  despotism  prepared  the  way  for  a  reign  of  law  ; 
soon  they  will  embrace  their  brothers-at-arms,  these 
brave  French  guards  with  whom  they  shared  a  heroic 
disobedience. 

"  Fraternal  liberality  and  well-deserved  honours  will 
acquit  the  country  of  the  debt  it  has  contracted 
towards  the  soldiers  of  Chateauvieux.  Thus  the 
efforts  of  good-citizenship  should  be  encouraged. 
This  moving  fete  will  everywhere  be  the  terror  of 
tyrants,  the  hope  and  consolation  of  patriots.  Thus 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  299 

we  will  prove  to  Europe  that  the  people,  unlike 
despots,  are  not  ungrateful,  and  that  a  nation  which  has 
become  free  knows  how  to  reward  the  supporters  of 
its  liberty,  as  it  knows  how  to  strike  down  conspira- 
tors, even  on  the  steps  of  the  throne. 

"  Numerous  citizens  have  charged  us  with  a  mission 
to  you,  which  we  fill  with  confidence  and  joy.  They 
invite  you,  by  our  voice,  to  be  witness  of  this  fete 
which  civism  and  the  arts  will  render  imposing  and 
memorable.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  magistrates 
of  the  people  will  consecrate  with  their  presence  the 
triumph  of  the  martyrs  of  the  people's  cause.  They 
have  preserved,  even  in  chains,  that  inward  and  moral 
liberty  of  which  all  the  kings  in  the  world  are  unable 
to  deprive  them.  The  country  has  engraved  on  their 
irons  the  oath  to  live  free  or  to  die,  as  it  has  engraved 
it  on  their  swords,  and  on  their  national  pikes,  as 
it  has  engraved  it  in  your  hearts,  in  ours,  and  in  those 
of  all  true  Frenchmen. 

<c  MARIE-JOSEPH  CHENIER 

u  THEROIGNE 

"DAVID 

"HlON,"    ETC. 

The  municipal  body  approved  of  the  petition  and 
invitation  ;  the  former  was  printed  and  distributed  to 
the  Forty-eight  Sections,  the  latter  was  courteously 
accepted. 

In  this  enterprise  Theroigne  is  found  in  excellent 
company.  Marie-Joseph  Ch£nier  was  the  poet  of  the 
Revolution.  He  won  fame  with  his  play  "  Charles 
IX.,"  of  which  Camille  Desmoulins  said  :  "  This  piece 


300  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

has  advanced  our  cause  better  than  the  days  of 
October."  Like  Theroigne  he  was  pursued  with 
venomous  attacks  by  the  Actes  des  Apotres.  His 
inspired  features  speak  of  his  deep  love  of  humanity 
and  of  his  lofty  aspirations  towards  freedom  and 
justice.  He  composed  numerous  patriotic  and  re- 
publican hymns,  among  which  the  "  Chant  du  depart " 
shared  with  the  Marseillaise  the  glory  of  guiding 
the  soldiers  to  victory.  David  did  for  art  what 
Chenier  did  for  poetry.  Not  content  with  using 
his  brush  to  depict  some  of  the  events  of  the  Re- 
volution, he  took  an  active  part  in  public  affairs, 
especially  in  organising  picturesque  fetes  like  the  one 
to  celebrate  the  release  of  the  Swiss  of  Chateauvieux. 

The  soldiers  were  set  free  in  February,  1792,  and 
marched  on  foot  to  Paris,  where  they  arrived  on 
April  9th.  They  were  accompanied  by  crowds  of 
citizens  and  two  deputies-extraordinary  of  Brest.  From 
Versailles  the  crowd  increased  enormously,  and  the 
shouts  of  "  Vive  la  Nation  !  "  became  deafening.  The 
procession  made  for  the  Hotel  de  Ville,  where,  after 
much  dispute,  and  the  matter  being  put  thrice  to  the 
vote,  they  were  admitted  to  the  Assembly. 

Tallien  drew  up  on  April  2nd  the  programme  of  the 
fete,  which  was  fixed  for  April  I5th,  a  Sunday. 

A  detachment  of  mounted  gendarmes  was  to  ride  at 
the  head  of  the  procession,  preceded  by  trumpeters, 
and  followed  by  a  battalion  of  the  National  Guard 
of  Paris,  a  band,  and  gendarmes  on  foot.  Then  a 
number  of  men  and  women  citizens,  eight  abreast, 
were  to  carry  in  their  midst  the  Declaration  of  the 
Rights  of  Man  ;  then  another  band.  A  second  group 


SAINT-JUST. 


301 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  303 

of  citizens  and  citoyennes  carried  arms  and  tools 
employed  in  the  Conquest  of  Liberty  on  July  I4th, 
1789.  These  were  to  surround  a  model  of  the  Bastille 
and  the  flag  of  the  fortress,  which  were  borne  turn  and 
turn  about  by  citizens  of  the  Faubourg  Saint-Antoine, 
conquerors  of  the  Bastille,  and  former  French  Guards 
dressed  in  their  uniforms. 

A  battalion  of  veterans  followed. 

A  third  group  included  the  flags  of  England, 
America,  and  France,  united  by  tricoloured  ribbons 
to  indicate  an  alliance,  and  carried  by  citizens  repre- 
senting the  free  peoples.  These  were  to  be  preceded 
by  busts  of  Franklin,  Sidney,  J.  J.  Rousseau,  and 
Voltaire,  carried  by  citizens  of  the  countries  where 
these  great  men  were  born,  and  surrounded  by  pupils 
from  the  schools. 

The  book  of  the  French  Constitution,  carried  by 
fathers  of  families,  their  wives,  mothers,  and  young 
citizens,  to  whom  it  was  confided  by  the  Representa- 
tives of  the  Nation,  formed  the  fourth  group. 

National  Guards  marched  between  the  groups. 

The  fifth  group  was  composed  of  deputies,  muni- 
cipal officers,  members  of  the  various  administrations, 
judges  of  the  Civil  and  Criminal  Tribunals,  and 
deputies  of  the  Forty-eight  Sections. 

These  were  to  be  followed  by  citizens  who  had  been 
victims  of  despotism  and  oppression,  others  carrying  a 
model  of  the  galleys,  and  still  more  carrying  oars 
decorated  with  flowers  and  ribbons. 

Then  followed  forty  citoyennes   carrying    as  many 
trophies,  made  out  of  the  chains  the  soldiers  had  worn, 
and  banners  bearing  emblems  and  inscriptions  in  the 
18 


304  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

honour  of  liberty.  In  the  centre  of  the  group  was  an 
ancient  sarcophagus,  on  which  were  traced  the  names 
of  twenty-three  soldiers  immolated  by  an  arbitrary 
judgment  to  the  vengeance  of  their  officers  and  to  the 
resentment  of  Bouilld. 

Another  sarcophagus  of  the  same  kind  was  con- 
secrated to  the  names  of  the  National  Guards  who 
died  victims  of  their  zeal  in  executing  the  law.  These 
two  funereal  monuments  were  inscribed  with  the 
legend  :  "  Bouille  and  his  accomplices  alone  are 
guilty." 

Then  came  the  Car  of  Liberty,  drawn  by  twenty 
horses,  harnessed  four  abreast. 

It  was  a  solemn  and  imposing  festival. 

In  an  earlier  plan  for  the  fete  it  had  been  suggested 
that  the  town  of  Brest  should  be  represented  by  a 
woman  partly  veiled  and  showing  signs  of  profound 
grief,  whilst  another  woman,  dressed  to  represent  Paris, 
was  to  approach,  embrace,  and  console  her  with 
promises  of  blessings  to  come.  It  was  supposed  that 
Theroigne  would  have  taken  one  of  these  parts  had 
not  the  idea  been  given  up  in  favour  of  the  statue 
of  Liberty. 

A  few  days  after  the  fete  her  popularity  received 
another  check,  this  time  at  the  hands  of  her  former 
friend,  Collot  d'Herbois.  The  occurrence  happened 
at  the  Jacobins  on  April  23rd.  Collot  d'Herbois, 
who  was  speaking,  congratulated  himself  on  the  fact 
that  Theroigne  whilst  at  the  Cafe  Hottot  on  the 
Terrace  of  the  Feuillants  had  declared  that  she  with- 
drew her  confidence  from  him  and  from  Robespierre. 
This  statement  was  received  with  much  laughter. 


To  Arms!  To  Arms!  305 

Theroigne  was  in  the  women's  gallery.  Irritated  by 
the  speaker  and  the  tittering  among  the  audience,  she 
leapt  over  the  barrier  which  separated  her  from  the 
main  body  of  the  hall,  avoiding  all  attempts  to  restrain 
her,  rushed  to  the  platform,  and  insisted  on  speaking. 
Her  excitement  was  intense,  her  gestures  highly  ani- 
mated. A  tumult  ensued,  which  the  president  found 
it  impossible  to  quell.  At  length  he  put  on  his 
hat  and  suspended  the  sitting.  Theroigne  was  led 
crestfallen  from  the  hall.  The  trouble  had  arisen 
because  a  rupture  had  occurred  between  the  Brissotins 
and  the  Robespierrists,  and  Theroigne,  in  spite  of  her 
friendship  for  Basire  and  her  recent  alliance  with 
Collot  d'Herbois,  had  declared  herself  Brissotine. 

A  writer  in  the  Correspondance  Litteraire  Secrete 
summed  up  the  matter  thus  on  April  28th  :  "  MM. 
Collot  d'Herbois,  Robespierre,  Chabot  the  ex-monk, 
and  Tallien  are  opposed  to  MM.  Brissot,  Condorcet, 
Fauchet,  Gaudet,  and  Vergniaud.  A  reconciliation 
is  rendered  more  difficult  than  it  would  otherwise  be 
because  several  women  are  taking  part  in  the  quarrel. 
These  are  Mme  de  Condorcet,  Mme  de  Stael,  and 
Mile  Theroigne." 

After  this  date  Th£roigne's  name  is  frequently 
coupled  in  the  royalist  press  with  those  of  Mme  de 
Stael  and  Mme  de  Condorcet. 


CHAPTER   VIII 

SULEAU 

DID  Theroigne  take  part  in  the  demonstrations 
of  June  20th  ?  The  authoritative  chroniclers 
give  no  definite  evidence  that  she  did.  The  deeds 
of  that  day  were  of  the  stirring  character  in  which 
she  delighted,  and  if  she  was  not  at  least  an  interested 
spectator  there  must  have  been  a  good  reason  for 
her  absence. 

France  was  afflicted  by  additional  calamity.  Besides 
internal  strife,  discontent,  revolt,  and  scarcity  of  food, 
the  allied  powers,  Austria  and  Prussia,  were  threat- 
ening utter  devastation,  particularly  from  the  north. 
Patriotism  was  ready  to  burst  forth  in  the  south  in 
the  hope  of  saving  France — for  the  blame  of  the  dis- 
aster rested,  according  to  the  people's  opinion,  on  the 
King's  shoulders.  The  day  on  which  the  power  of 
the  masses  could  no  longer  be  kept  in  check  was  at 
hand.  After  much  demur  permission  had  been  granted 
for  a  petition  to  be  presented  to  the  Assembly  by 
armed  men.  The  citizens  of  the  Faubourg  Saint- 
Antoine  were  gathered  ready  to  march  to  the  palace. 
The  streets  were  filled  with  agitated  crowds,  National 
Guards,  demonstrators  armed  with  pikes,  the  porters 
of  the  markets,  women  waving  branches  of  trees,  little 
children  joining  in  the  general  clamour.  Petion,  the 

306 


Suleau  307 

mayor,  had  doubled  the  guard  at  the  Tuileries,  but 
took  no  steps  to  prevent  the  formation  or  progress 
of  a  procession.  It  was  impossible.  A  repetition  of 
the  massacre  of  the  Champ  de  Mars  would  have 
been  an  irretrievable  mistake.  The  crowd  swelled 
and  swelled,  until  by  eleven  o'clock  in  the  morning 
it  was  an  irresistible  human  force  ready  to  overflow 
in  any  direction  suggested  by  its  leaders.  There  was 
no  talk  of  violence.  This  was  to  be  a  peaceable  fete  ; 
one  of  the  fetes  ever  beloved  of  the  masses  during 
the  Revolution.  It  was  proposed,  said  Roederer,  to 
plant  a  tree  of  liberty  almost  at  the  door  of  the 
palace.  At  the  earliest  hour  of  the  morning  this  leafy 
symbol  of  budding  summer  and  renewed  hope  was 
already  hoisted  on  a  cart  in  anticipation  of  its  tri- 
umphal journey.  Surely  this  was  a  project  after 
Th£roigne's  own  heart.  Planting  trees  of  liberty,  even 
though  they  came  no  nearer  to  the  Tuileries  than  the 
garden  of  the  Capuchins,  was  not  an  amusement  to 
be  indulged  in  every  day.  Her  friend  Saint-Huruge 
was  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  mob  ;  Santerre  was 
another.  Maton  de  la  Varenne  declared  that  Theroigne 
was  a  third.  But  his  opinion  is  of  little  value,  for 
his  remarks  concerning  her  are  full  of  inaccuracies. 
He  called  her  "  a  miserable  creature,  small,  wrinkled, 
and  sickly,  who  blushed  at  the  least  coaxing  ways  of 
men,  and  who  by  an  appearance  of  wit,  although  no 
real  powers  of  attraction,  had  captivated  and  ruined 
several,"  and  he  accused  her  of  trying  to  foment  an 
insurrection  at  Vienna ! 

With    her   or   without   her,   the    people,  intent   on 
their  fete,  swarmed  from  east,  west,  north,  and  south, 


308  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

but  chiefly  east,  to  make  their  way  into  the  grave 
presence  of  the  country 's  legislators.  A  peaceable 
and  good-humoured  crowd,  but  nevertheless  a  crowd 
excitable  and  unrestrainable.  The  petitioners,  without 
asking  by  your  leave  or  with  your  leave,  rushed  into 
the  hall.  The  Assembly,  roused  by  this  irregularity, 
rose  to  close  the  sitting.  The  intruders  withdrew. 
Thereupon  permission  was  given  them  to  make  an 
orderly  advance.  The  petition  was  read  at  the  bar. 
It  contained  the  usual  plea  for  freedom  from  op- 
pression, and  in  addition  a  demand  that  the  King 
should  have  no  will  but  that  of  the  law.  There  was 
no  manifestation  of  republicanism  as  yet.  Dancing, 
singing,  and  full  of  joviality,  the  encouraged  petitioners 
made  their  way  out  through  the  hall,  and  thence 
towards  the  Tuileries,  accompanied  at  a  safe  distance 
by  battalions  of  the  National  Guard.  In  their  turn 
they  were  followed  by  a  rabble  of  women,  armed  men 
carrying  waving  flags,  a  bullock's  heart  raised  high 
upon  a  pike,  with  the  gruesome  inscription,  "  Heart 
of  an  aristocrat,"  and  a  pair  of  ragged  breeches  hoisted 
in  the  air,  bearing  the  legend,  "  Vivent  les  sans-culottes 
—Tremble,  oh  Tyrants." 

At  the  palace  admittance  was  at  first  refused,  but 
presently,  by  the  King's  order,  the  gates  were  unbarred. 
The  mob  shouted  hoarsely  for  the  King,  and  cries  of 
"Down  with  the  veto ! "  rang  through  the  air.  Santerre 
was  among  the  last  to  come  from  the  Assembly,  and 
his  followers  had  a  cannon  with  them  which  was  drawn 
up  to  the  royal  gate,  and  presently,  some  say,  up  the 
staircase  of  the  palace  itself.  The  daring  of  such  a  deed 
whetted  the  already  tense  excitement  of  the  people. 


Suleau  309 

Pouring  into  the  palace,  they  rushed  into  the 
apartments,  seeking  for  the  King.  When  at  length 
he  appeared,  calm  and  imperturbable,  as  was  his  usual 
attitude  in  the  face  of  danger,  he  was  urged  to  enter 
one  of  the  large  apartments  in  order  that  a  petition 
might  be  read  to  him.  There  he  was  asked  to  step 
upon  a  bench,  and  one  of  the  rabble  held  up  his  red 
cap  on  a  pike.  Amidst  general  applause  the  King 
placed  it  on  his  head.  Demarteau,  who  is  usually  a 
reliable  chronicler,  says  that  Theroigne  marched  at  the 
head  of  the  people  of  the  faubourgs,  who  invaded  the 
Tuileries,  and  forced  the  King  to  place  the  bonnet-rouge 
on  his  head.  The  extravagant  Duval  declares  that 
on  June  2Oth  Theroigne  appeared  at  the  head  of  a 
crowd  of  brigands  who  invaded  the  King's  apartments, 
and  helped  to  push  one  of  the  wheels  of  the  cannon 
which  was  hoisted  into  the  hall  where  the  people  had 
forced  the  King  to  appear  before  them.  When  Petion 
arrived  she  went  to  shake  hands  with  him  ;  and  when 
he  commanded  the  people  to  withdraw,  she  said  to  him 
in  a  tone  of  reproach,  "  I  believe  we  might  have  ended 
the  whole  matter  to-day  !  " 

Meanwhile  the  Queen  was  with  difficulty  dissuaded 
from  joining  the  King.  She  stood  with  her  children 
beside  her,  surrounded  by  grenadiers,  watching  the 
rabble  invading  the  sanctity  of  the  private  apartments 
with  a  sense  of  unutterable  disgust  in  her  heart  and 
an  expression  of  staunch  indifference  on  her  features. 
With  her  own  hand  she  placed  the  obnoxious  bonnet- 
rouge  on  the  head  of  her  little  son,  and  when  Santerre, 
speaking  to  her  in  friendly  terms,  relieved  the  child 
of  this  disfiguring  headgear,  she  appeared  conciliatory 


310  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

enough,  although  a  shudder  swept  over  her  frame.  At 
length,  after  an  invasion  of  the  palace  lasting  three 
hours,  the  people  took  their  departure,  induced  to  do 
so  by  Petion  and  Santerre.  The  Queen  hastened  to 
join  the  King,  who,  finding  himself  still  adorned  with 
the  red  cap,  tossed  it  from  him  in  a  fit  of  impetuous 
anger. 

Thus  passed,  harmlessly  enough,  one  invasion  of 
the  palace  by  the  people.  Their  next  visit  was  to  have 
more  serious  consequences.  In  July  the  fever  of  unrest 
became  more  and  more  pronounced ;  every  peasant  in 
the  country  dropped  the  handles  of  his  plough,  betook 
himself  to  the  mayoralty,  saw  the  proclamation  that  the 
country  was  in  danger,  and  returned,  a  soldier  at  heart, 
the  cockade  in  his  cap.  If  in  June  the  royal  family 
had  been  exposed  to  a  sense  of  unbearable  humiliation, 
in  July  they  were  dominated  by  fear — fear  of  death  by 
the  sword,  by  poison,  or  perhaps  worse,  by  judicial 
condemnation.  The  last  hope  of  flight  was  dwindling 
away,  the  last  hope  of  rescue  by  foreign  forces  was 
dead  ;  nothing  remained  but  the  dumb  pain  of  impo- 
tence, the  inability  to  escape  from  an  unrelenting  fate. 
And  so  in  a  slow  agony  the  days  passed,  bringing 
nearer  and  still  more  near  the  crisis  which  was  to  deter- 
mine the  bitter  end  of  the  royal  household.  Repub- 
licanism had  come  suddenly  to  life.  During  the  first 
days  of  August  one  word  sounded  ominously  in  the 
ears  of  those  who  loved  their  rulers — cc  dethronement." 
It  was  a  thought  which  spurred  the  people  to  action  ; 
it  was  the  keynote  of  the  deeds  of  the  terrible  roth. 

There  is  no  room  for  doubt  as  to  Theroigne's  move- 
ments on  that  day.  She  played  a  conspicuous  role 


Suleau  311 

in  one  of  the  dramatic  incidents  which  made  up  the 
tragic  scenes  of  the  attack  upon  the  palace.  In  this 
incident  she  and  Suleau  were  the  two  chief  actors. 

The  de  Goncourts  say  bluntly,  "On  August  loth 
Therqigne  murdered  Suleau."  It  was  natural  that  so 
bold  an  assertion  should  lead  to  questions  as  to  the 
motive  of  the  crime.  Various  motives  were  imputed 
to  her.  The  most  romantic  stories  were  woven  about 
the  event.  At  first  it  was  supposed  that  Theroigne 
had  vowed  vengeance  upon  some  young  seigneur  who 
had  betrayed  her  in  early  life,  and,  coming  face  to  face 
with  him,  had  wreaked  her  vengeance  and  wiped  out 
her  wrongs  by  his  death.  Lamartine  is  responsible 
for  perpetrating  this  dramatic  but  improbable  version 
of  what  took  place.  He  does  not  mention  August  loth, 
but  dates  the  tragedy  as  from  the  massacres  of  Septem- 
ber. "  Her  ascendancy  during  the  emeutes  was  so 
great,"  he  says,  "that  with  a  single  sign  she  condemned 
or  acquitted  a  victim  ;  and  the  royalists  trembled  to 
meet  her.  During  this  period,  by  one  of  those  chances 
that  appear  like  the  premeditated  vengeances  of  destiny, 
she  recognised  in  Paris  the  young  Belgian  gentleman 
who  had  seduced  and  abandoned  her.  Her  look  told 
him  how  great  was  his  danger,  and  he  sought  to  avert 
it  by  imploring  her  pardon.  'My  pardon/  said  she,  'at 
what  price  can  you  purchase  it  ?  My  innocence  gone, 
my  family  lost  to  me,  my  brothers  and  sisters  pursued 
in  their  own  country  by  the  jeers  and  sarcasms  of 
their  kindred  ;  the  malediction  of  my  father,  my  exile 
from  my  native  land,  my  enrolment  amongst  the 
infamous  caste  of  courtesans  ;  the  blood  with  which 
my  days  have  been  and  will  be  stained  ;  that  imperish- 


3*2  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

able  curse  attached  to  my  name,  instead  of  that  immor- 
tality of  virtue  which  you  have  taught  me  to  doubt. 
It  is  for  this  that  you  would  purchase  my  forgiveness. 
Do  you  know  any  price  on  earth  capable  of  purchasing 
it  ? '  The  young  man  made  no  reply.  Theroigne 
had  not  the  generosity  to  forgive  him,  and  he  perished 
in  the  massacres  of  September.  In  proportion  as  the 
Revolution  became  more  bloody,  she  plunged  deeper 
into  it.  She  could  no  longer  exist  without  the  feverish 
excitement  of  public  emotion." 

That  may  be  fine  writing,  but  it  is  not  the  truth. 
If  Theroigne  felt  personal  animus  against  Suleau,  a 
plausible  explanation  might  be  that  she  knew  of  him 
as  one  of  the  authors  who  had  poured  forth  incessant 
abuse  of  her  in  the  pages  of  the  Act 63  des  Apotres. 
But  it  is  difficult,  almost  impossible,  to  apportion 
her  exact  share  in  the  murder  of  the  royalist.  The 
crowd  was  thirsty  for  victims.  Suleau  was  one  of 
the  most  prominent  and  most  hated  of  those  prisoners 
who  offered  a  chance  of  assuaging  the  rioters'  lust  for 
blood.  Did  Theroigne  make  any  special  movement, 
even  the  slightest  push,  to  precipitate  his  fate  ?  If 
she  did,  was  not  her  action  quite  possibly  the  out- 
come of  the  mad  passions  which  dominated  the  crowd 
rather  than  any  deliberate  desire  to  destroy  a  per- 
sonal enemy  ?  With  grave  questions  such  as  these 
unanswered  it  is  not  possible  to  be  sure  that  an 
accusation  of  wilful  intent  to  murder  against  her 
would  be  just.  On  the  other  hand,  to  hold  her 
innocent  is  impossible.  Only  a  few  moments  earlier 
she  had  been  speaking  to  the  crowd  of  people,  sway- 
ing them  to  her  lightest  will ;  and  though  it  is  true 


Suleau  3T3 

that  they  had  escaped  her  control,  it  seems  probable 
that  had  she  urged  them  to  stay  their  hands  Suleau 
might  have  been  saved — at  least,  for  the  time  being. 

There  is  one  important  point  in  her  favour.  The 
first  victim  of  all  was  the  Abbe  Bouyon,  editor  of 
Les  Folies  d'un  Mois — also  guilty  of  maligning  The- 
roigne,  and  no  doubt  equally  an  object  of  her  hate  ; 
but  it  has  never  been  suggested  that  she  was  in  any 
degree  implicated  in  his  death.  Carried  away  by  the 
tragic  turn  the  Revolution  was  taking,  she  may  have 
come  to  the  point  when  she  was  tainted  by  the 
general  belief  that  no  measures  short  of  violence  and 
massacre  were  possible.  If  that  be  the  case,  she  had 
gone  a  long  way  since  the  day  when  she  had  desired 
to  take  only  an  academic  interest  in  the  political 
upheaval — when  she  had  been  a  reformer,  and  not 
a  fighter.  In  this  attitude  she  was  not  alone  ;  hun- 
dreds, nay,  thousands,  had  been  infected  by  the  same 
thirst  for  blood — the  spirit  which  led,  within  the  suc- 
ceeding twelve  months,  to  the  excesses  committed  in 
the  name  of  liberty  under  the  shadow  of  the  guillotine. 

If  Theroigne  must  be  blamed  for  the  responsibility 
of  one  man's  death,  she  had,  at  least,  far  less  upon 
her  conscience  than  hundreds  of  the  men  with  whom 
she  was  working  and  struggling  side  by  side.  In 
her  normal  state  she  was  not  by  nature  cruel — quite 
the  reverse ;  and  if  she  were  guilty  of  an  act  of 
cruelty  to  Suleau,  the  abnormal  conditions  of  the 
hour  in  which  the  deed  was  done  must  not  be  ignored 
when  estimating  her  culpability. 

Suleau's  position  was  enough  to  bring  the  manner 
of  his  death  into  particular  prominence.  He  was 


314  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

very  well   known   by  the   patriots  as   well  as  by  the 
royalists.     Born  in  Picardy  in   1758,   he  had  studied 
and   travelled    much,    returning   to    Paris   in    August 
1789.     He  was  many-sided.     In  his  composition  was 
a  little  of  the  soldier,  a  little  of  the  lawyer,  a  good 
deal  of  the  writer,   and,   first  and  foremost,   the  ad- 
venturer.    He  threw  himself  with  the  peculiar  vivacity 
and   gaiety    natural    to    him    into    the   thick    of    the 
activities.     Before  long  he  was  arrested  for  lese-nation, 
then    newly   a   punishable   crime,    and   was   arraigned 
before  the  Chatelet.     His  trial  was  a  judicial  comedy. 
He   railed    and    mocked    at    the    accusation,    at   the 
judges,  at  the  people,  at  the  whole  world.     In  April 
1790    he    was    released,    but     he    had    not    learned 
wisdom.     Hot-headed  as  ever,  he  made  himself  well 
hated  as  a  pamphleteer,  being  largely  responsible  for 
the  notoriety  attained  by  the  Actes  des  Apotres.     Still 
his   love    of    danger    and    intrigue    were   unsatiated. 
His   characteristics    won    for   him    the    nickname    of 
"Chevalier  de  la  Difficult^." 

At  the  close  of  1791  he  went  to  Coblenz  and 
worked  amongst  the  emigres  with  more  energy  than 
discretion,  conspiring  with  foreign  princes,  and  acting 
against  the  national  interests  of  France.  As  was  not 
surprising  for  a  man  of  his  class  and  temperament, 
he  gained  the  hatred  of  the  patriots  without  ingrati- 
ating himself  with  the  noblesse.  Neither  the  French 
aristocracy  nor  the  foreign  powers  trusted  him  or 
took  his  efforts  seriously,  and  this  blow  to  his  pride 
kept  him  temporarily  inactive.  But  in  August  he 
had  been  working  on  the  side  of  the  royalist  party. 
He  was  amongst  those  who,  dressed  in  the  uniform 


Suleau  3X5 

of  the  National  Guard,  were  sent  out  to  report  on 
the  condition  and  temper  of  the  people.  It  was  said 
that  on  the  morning  of  the  9th  Suleau  told  his 
friend  Le  Sourd  that  he  had  been  warned  by  Camille 
Desmoulins  that  a  price  had  been  placed  upon  his 
(Suleau's)  head,  and  Camille  had  offered  him  a  refuge 
at  his  own  house,  which  he  refused.  Le  Sourd  met 
him  twice  during  the  succeeding  twenty-four  hours — 
the  first  time  he  was  following  in  the  track  of  Petion, 
who  had  been  ordered  to  the  bar  of  the  Legislative 
Assembly  to  give  an  account  of  the  chances  of  public 
tranquillity,  the  second  time  was  shortly  before  his 
arrest,  when  he  invited  Le  Sourd  to  his  house  in  the 
Place  Vendome  to  take  refreshments.  "  It  was  then," 
says  his  friend,  "  that,  leaving  the  terrace  of  the 
Feuillants  and  crossing  the  court,  he  was  arrested. 
The  too  famous  Th£roigne  de  Mericourt  was  estab- 
lished there  on  a  makeshift  platform.  She  did  not 
know  Suleau,  but  he  had  been  pointed  out  to  her 
by  the  chiefs  of  the  conspiracy  as  a  necessary  victim. 
One  of  the  furies  round  her  having  named  him  to 
her,  she  designated  him  to  one  of  the  hired  assassins 
near  to  her,  who  thereupon  massacred  him.  His 
body  was  dragged  to  the  right-hand  corner  of  the 
Place  Vendome,  under  our  very  windows,  and  was 
placed  there  with  those  of  eight  other  victims." 

A  dramatic  account  of  the  affair,  which,  however, 
in  many  details  is  wanting  in  accuracy,  is  from  the 
pen  of  Baron  Thiebault,  Lieutenant-General  in  the 
French  Army. 

On  the  night  of  August  9th  preparations  had  been 
made  at  the  Tuileries  to  repel  the  threatened  attack 


316  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

of  the  people.  False  patrols  had  been  ordered  to  sally 
forth  dressed  as  National  Guards,  their  apparent  object 
to  keep  the  peace  ;  in  reality  to  slaughter  the  people 
if  the  chance  came.  Drums  rolled,  there  was  the 
clash  of  arms,  the  tocsin  boomed.  A  skirmish  between 
the  false  and  the  real  Guards  was  in  progress,  and 
many  of  the  former  were  carried  prisoner  to  the 
guardroom  in  the  Cour  de  Feuillants. 

Hearing  this  news,  the  people  crowded  into  the 
court  early  in  the  morning  of  the  loth. 

"  The  courtyard  was  getting  fuller  and  fuller,  and 
the  cries  became  appalling,"  writes  Thiebault.  "  I 
determined  then  to  send  La  Fargue  to  the  officer 
commanding  the  Butte  des  Moulins  battalion,  which 
was  assembled  fourteen  hundred  strong  in  the  Place 
Vendome,  asking  for  reinforcements.  He  would 
only  have  to  cross  the  Rue  Saint-Honor6,  while 
two  hundred  men  would  suffice  to  clear  the  court- 
yard of  the  Feuillants,  and  enable  us  to  close  the  gates 
and  disperse  the  rabble.  But  the  commander,  whose 
name  I  have  forgotten,  replied  that  without  orders  he 
could  not  detach  a  man  outside  his  section.  La 
Fargue  replied,  *  Well,  sir,  if  they  cut  our  throats 
and  murder  our  prisoners  you  will  have  one  advantage, 
namely,  that  of  being  in  a  front-row  box/  ' 

Thiebault  tried  a  last  resource,  since  he  could  not 
get  reinforcements.  He  rushed  into  the  midst  of  the 
crowd,  mounted  on  one  of  the  two  guns  which  stood 
in  the  courtyard,  and  harangued  the  people  from  this 
improvised  platform.  u  Are  you  Frenchmen  ?  "  he 
cried.  "  So  are  we  no  less.  Are  you  patriots  ?  So 
are  we  no  Jess,  But  you  will  cease  to  be  worthy 


Suleau  317 

of  one  or  the  other  title  if  you  cannot  get  beyond 
the  detestable  idea  of  replacing  justice  by  assassina- 
tion. You  will  indeed  be  rebels,  for  the  Assembly 
has  put  the  prisoners  under  our  guardianship.  What 
have  you  then  to  demand  ?  It  can  be  only  one  thing, 
namely,  that  the  prisoners — against  nearly  all  of  whom, 
by  the  way,  there  is  no  charge — should  not  escape. 
Well,  I  answer  for  them  on  my  honour.  I  will  be 
responsible  with  my  own  head,  and,  if  that  is  not 
guarantee  enough,  I  will  add  to  their  guard  any  three 
of  you  whom  you  like  to  choose." 

Some  of  the  crowd  made  answer,  to  which  Thiebault 
replied,  endeavouring  by  every  means  in  his  power  to 
gain  time.  Just  as  he  was  congratulating  himself  on 
the  success  of  his  efforts  Theroigne  de  M6ricourt 
entered  the  courtyard.  She  was  dressed  in  a  black 
felt  hat  with  a  black  plume,  a  blue  amazone,  and 
carried  pistols  and  a  dagger  in  her  belt.  "  She  was 
a  dark  girl  of  about  twenty,"  writes  Thiebault,  "  and, 
with  a  sort  of  shudder  I  say  it,  very  pretty,  made 
still  more  beautiful  by  her  excitement.  Preceded  and 
followed  by  a  number  of  maniacs,  she  cleft  her  way 
through  the  crowd,  crying  'Make  room  !  make  room  V 
went  straight  to  the  other  gun  and  leapt  upon  it.  ... 
Having  heard  what  was  going  on,  she  had  hurried 
up  from  Robespierre's  house,  and,  confident  in  her 
influence  with  the  populace,  she  had  come  to  restore 
all  its  ferocity  to  the  mob.  As  long  as  I  live  that 
creature  will  be  present  before  my  eyes  ;  the  sound 
of  her  voice  will  ring  in  my  ears  as  she  uttered  the 
first  sentence  of  her  discourse.  c  How  long/  she 
shrieked?  '  will  you  let  yourselves  be  misled  by  empty 


318  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

phrases  ? '  I  tried  to  answer,  but  I  could  no  longer 
make  myself  heard.  A  thousand  voices  greeted  with 
applause  every  word  that  she  uttered." 

Compelled  to  silence  and  at  the  end  of  his  wits, 
Thiebault  got  off  the  gun  and  forced  his  way  through 
the  angry  crowd  back  to  the  guardroom.  He  shut 
and  locked  the  door  behind  him.  Furious,  the  mob 
hurled  themselves  against  it.  The  upper  part  was  of 
glass  ;  it  splintered,  the  broken  panes  flying  into  the 
defenders'  faces.  At  the  end  of  a  narrow  passage  were 
a  score  of  men  armed  with  bayonets  and  loaded 
muskets.  To  force  their  way  through  the  passage 
or  through  the  iron-barred  window  meant  loss  of  life 
to  all  who  attempted  it.  The  mob  halted. 

"  They  found  it  more  dignified,"  continued  Thie- 
bault, "  to  put  me  on  my  trial,  their  beautiful  fury, 
Mile  de  M£ricourt,  presiding,  and  to  condemn  me, 
unanimously  and  by  acclamation,  to  death.  I  never 
saw  her  again  after  that  day,  but,  though  I  am  as 
susceptible  as  most  men  to  the  influence  of  women, 
I  certainly  never  met  another  woman  who,  in  half 
an  hour,  could  have  left  on  my  mind  a  recollection 
of  her  which  a  thousand  years  would  not  weaken." 

Suleau's  handsome  face  and  upright  bearing  made 
him  appear  a  conspicuous  figure.  Seeing  the  danger 
of  his  fellow  prisoners,  he  cried  :  "  Comrades,  I  believe 
that  the  people  mean  to  shed  blood  to-day,  but  perhaps 
one  victim  will  satisfy  them.  Let  me  go  to  them. 
I  will  pay  for  all."  He  accompanied  these  words  with 
an  attempt  to  leap  from  the  window,  but  he  was  kept 
back  by  the  National  Guard.  It  was  at  this  moment 
that  the  mob  burst  into  the  building.  The  first  victim 


Suleau  319 

was  a  harmless  dramatic  author  of  the  name  of  Bouyon, 
who  was  carried  forth  into  the  courtyard  and  rent 
limb  from  limb.  Suleau  was  seized  and  despoiled 
of  his  uniform  and  arms.  As  he  struggled,  Theroigne, 
who  had  rushed  into'  the  guardroom  at  the  head  of 
the  crowd,  caught  sight  of  him. 

The  accounts  accuse  her  of  a  fury  which  knew  no 
bounds.  <c  Where  is  the  Abbe  Suleau  ?  "  she  cried, 
and  then,  coming  face  to  face  with  him,  she  hurled 
more  personal  questions  at  him.  "  Am  I  the  mistress 
of  Populus  ?  Am  I  old  ?  Am  I  hideous  ? "  And, 
throwing  herself  upon  him,  she  seized  him  by  the 
throat  and  dragged  him  into  the  thick  of  the  murderous 
rabble.  Hundreds  of  arms  were  stretched  out  to 
avenge  her.  Suleau  fought  like  a  lion  attacked  by 
twenty  madmen,  but  before  a  moment  had  passed 
he  was  pierced  by  a  dozen  swords,  and  his  body 
was  flung  out  into  the  Place  Vendome  with  those  of 
eight  or  nine  more  victims. 

"  Thus  perished  the  amiable  Suleau,"  writes  the 
royalist  Peltier,  who  was  an  eye-witness  of  these  scenes, 
"whose  gaiety,  candour,  and  friendship  endeared  him 
to  me." 

At  the  time  of  his  death  Suleau  was  thirty-five,  and 
had  recently  married  Adela  Hall,  the  daughter  of  the 
artist.  The  fact  that  he  left  a  young  widow  to  mourn 
his  death  made  the  horror  of  it  more  poignant. 

"  Ah,  amiable  Suleau,"  wrote  his  friend  Peltier, 
"  since  the  hand  of  thy  young  wife  could  not  perform 
the  last  fond  duty  of  closing  thy  eyes  in  death,  let 
friendship  at  least  be  allowed  to  scatter  a  few  flowers 
over  thy  ashes.  Thou  art  no  more  !  It  was  thy  fate 


A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

to  expire  with  French  monarchy.  Thy  loyalty  has 
already  received  its  reward  ;  in  dying  first  thou  hast 
not  been  witness  to  the  long  series  of  disasters  which 
have  made  us  every  day  since  experience  a  thousand 
deaths." 

The  murder  of  the  royalists  whetted  the  excite- 
ment of  the  people.  Rushing  from  the  guardroom 
through  the  courtyard,  they  joined  the  crowd  who 
were  marching  on  to  attack  the  palace. 

.  •  •  •  • 

The  King  and  Queen,  being  informed  that  they 
were  no  longer  safe  in  the  Tuileries,  had  decided  to 
seek  refuge  with  the  legislative  body  in  the  Salle 
de  Manege.  "  The  King  is  going  to  the  Assembly  ; 
make  room  !  "  cried  Roederer.  At  first  no  obstacle 
was  placed  in  the  way  of  a  free  passage,  and  crest- 
fallen royalty  defiled  by  the  staircase  leading  to  the 
terrace  of  the  Feuillants,  where  the  crowd  hemmed 
it  in.  After  a  delay  of  a  quarter  of  an  hour,  after 
urging  and  pleading,  and  the  employment  of  slight 
physical  compulsion,  a  way  was  cleared  for  the  King, 
and  his  Majesty  was  permitted  to  resume  the  path 
which  led  for  ever  from  the  Tuileries.  The  Queen 
had  lost  her  usual  fortitude,  and  her  face  showed  signs 
of  tears;  Madame  Royale  wore  the  bewildered  look 
of  fear  which  was  becoming  habitual;  the  Dauphin, 
wearied  and  sickly,  was  borne  on  the  shoulders  of  a 
grenadier. 

In  the  Assembly  chamber  the  King  took  his  seat 
beside  the  president.  But  the  legislative  body  were 
hindered  by  convention  from  debating  openly  in  the 
King's  presence,  and  decided  that  the  royal  family 


Suleau  321 

must  retire  into  a  small  box  used  by  the  reporters 
of  a  certain  journal,  which  was  partitioned  off  at  the 
back  of  the  hall.  There  for  fourteen  hours  they 
remained  without  repose  or  refreshment,  cramped  in 
this  prison  that  was  but  a  few  feet  square.  Inside 
the  hall  the  drone  of  the  speakers'  voices  continued, 
outside  the  ominous  murmur  of  a  gathering  throng 
was  heard.  The  hot  sun  poured  down  upon  the 
Queen  as  she  sat  there,  causing  her  to  fall  into  a 
drowsy  nightmare  that  was  but  half  sensation.  Then 
a  new  sound  stirred  her  into  consciousness  ;  it  was  the 
boom  of  guns,  the  crash  of  falling  glass  and  masonry, 
the  shrieks  of  the  wounded  and  dying. 

The  story  of  that  attack  upon  the  Tuileries  has  been 
told  over  and  over  again,  and  while  the  details  grow 
wearisome,  the  horror  of  it  must  ever  seem  acute. 
The  abode  of  royalty  had  become  a  battleground.  The 
rabble,  possibly  still  unaware  of  the  King's  departure, 
beat  down  the  courtyard  gates  and  turned  their  guns 
upon  the  palace.  The  royalists,  reluctant  to  fire 
on  the  people,  hoped  that  conciliatory  measures  might 
stem  the  rush  of  the  aggressive  crowd.  But  a  short 
parley  showed  their  hope  was  vain.  Shots  were  dis- 
charged on  both  sides.  The  Swiss  entrenched  on 
the  main  stairway  were  subjected  to  a  shower  of  balls. 
Rushing  out  from  the  barrier,  they  opened  a  fusillade 
on  the  Marseillais,  and  for  a  moment  it  appeared  that 
the  people  might  be  successfully  driven  back.  It  was 
then  that  the  ill-advised  written  order  to  cease  firing 
was  handed  to  the  Swiss.  The  Marseillais  and  Bretons 
rallied  and  stormed  the  palace.  They  massacred  those 
of  the  Swiss  who  were  still  within,  they  sacked  the 


322  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

royal  abode,  destroying  the  last  vestige  of  the  King's 
authority.  The  republicans  were  the  men  of  the 
hour,  and  with  them  terror  reigned  in  Paris. 


The  immediate  result  of  that  day  as  far  as  Theroigne 
was  concerned  was  a  reward.  In  the  Moniteur  of 
September  3rd  an  entry  occurs  announcing  that  the 
federes  had  bestowed  upon  Miles  Theroigne,  Lacombe, 
and  Reine  Audu  civic  crowns  for  distinguishing  them- 
selves by  their  courage  on  August  loth. 


CHAPTER   IX 

BRISSOTINE 

DURING  many  days  republican  fever  ran  riot  in 
the  blood  of  the  people.  The  King  and  Queen 
were  in  the  Temple.  There  was  much  to  be  said, 
much  to  be  done,  not  a  moment  to  waste.  At  the 
Jacobins  Club  this  stress  made  itself  felt  as  much  as 
anywhere.  There  was  something  in  the  tone  there 
which  portended  great  issues.  One  intimate  glimpse 
of  Theroigne,  showing  her  at  this  moment  of  tense 
calm  before  the  storm,  we  owe  to  Dr.  John  Moore, 
who  had  been  studying  the  events  of  that  week  to 
some  purpose.  He  had  obtained  a  full  view  of  the 
Queen,  and  had  deplored  the  change  in  her  appearance. 
"  Her  beauty  is  gone.  No  wonder  !  "  he  writes. 

A  few  days  later,  on  the  lyth,  he  visited  the  Jacobins, 
where  "  there  was  not,  properly  speaking,  a  debate,  but 
rather  a  series  of  violent  speeches,"  and  saw  the  daughter 
of  the  people. 

"  There  were  abundance  of  women  in  the  galleries," 
he  continues,  "  but  as  there  were  none  in  the  body  of 
the  hall  where  the  members  were  seated,  I  was  surprised 
to  see  one  enter  and  take  her  seat  amongst  them.  She 
was  dressed  in  a  kind  of  English  riding-habit,  but  her 
jacket  was  the  uniform  of  the  National  Guards.  On 
inquiry  I  was  informed  that  the  name  of  this  Amazon 

323 


324  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

is  Mademoiselle  Thdroigne  ;  she  distinguished  herself 
in  the  action  of  the  loth  by  rallying  those  who 
fled,  and  attacking  a  second  time  at  the  head  of  the 
Marseillais. 

"  She  seems  about  one  or  two  and  thirty,1  is  some- 
what above  the  middle  size  of  women,  and  has  a  smart 
martial  air,  which  in  a  man  would  not  be  disagreeable." 

That  day  the  partisans  of  Robespierre  were  so  loud 
in  their  demonstrations  that  any  speaker  whose  senti- 
ments happened  not  to  be  quite  in  accord  with  theirs 
was  howled  down  and  the  tribune  given  up  to  some 
one  who  had  a  more  palatable  doctrine  to  propound. 

The  great  issues  were  about  to  begin  at  the  point 
of  the  knife.  The  people,  having  steeped  their  hands 
in  crime  and  bloodshed,  were  not  brought  back  easily 
within  bounds  of  moderation. 

At  the  beginning  of  September  massacres  were 
carried  out  systematically.  Butchers  stalked  through 
the  jails  slaughtering  the  prisoners  like  sheep.  There 
was  carnage  everywhere — at  the  Abbaye,  at  the 
Chatelet,  at  La  Force,  at  the  Conciergerie,  the  Bicetre, 
and  La  Salpetriere,  the  place  of  durance  vile  of  which 
Theroigne  was  before  long  to  gain  an  extended  know- 
ledge. 

It  is  impossible  to  depict  the  disorder  that  existed, 
or  to  explain  the  paralytic  inaction  of  those  in  authority 
and  of  the  masses  of  more  peaceable  inhabitants,  who  did 
not  even  denounce  the  doings  of  the  murderers,  or 
attempt  to  interfere  with  this  wholesale  slaughter. 
The  blood  that  was  being  spilt  incited  all  who  had 
shared  in  the  spilling  to  continue  their  gruesome 
1  Dr,  Moore  overestimated  her  age. 


Brissotine  325 

labours.  The  women  of  the  Revolution  joined  in 
these  diabolical  doings.  Following  in  the  footsteps 
of  Billaud-Varennes,  who,  wading  through  blood,  cried 
"  Bring  wine  for  the  brave  toilers  who  are  about  to 
deliver  the  nation  from  its  foes,"  they  remarked 
facetiously  that  they  were  carrying  dinner  to  the 
husbands  who  were  at  work  in  the  prisons. 

In  contrast  to  their  ferocious  attitude,  such  brave 
royalist  women  as  Elizabeth  Cazotte  and  Mile  de 
Sombreuil,  amongst  others,  stand  out  as  wonderful 
examples  of  courage,  sacrifice,  and  filial  piety.  The 
former,  throwing  herself  between  her  father  and  his 
would-be  assassins,  cried,  "Strike,  if  you  must,  you 
scoundrels,  but  you  will  not  get  at  him  except  over  my 
dead  body  "  ;  and  the  latter  was  credited  with  having 
gulped  down  without  a  murmer  of  disgust  a  glass 
containing  the  blood  of  an  aristocrat — a  nauseous 
draught  forced  upon  her  by  the  murderous  demagogues 
as  the  price  of  her  father's  release. 

It  is  impossible  to  say  with  certainty  whether 
Th£roigne,  excited  as  she  was  by  her  activities  on 
August  loth,  restrained  herself  from  staining  her  hands 
with  additional  crime  during  these  days  of  unbridled 
licence.  The  best  evidence  that  can  be  put  forward 
in  favour  of  her  innocence  is  the  fact  that  she  with- 
drew her  support  from  the  extreme  party  to  bestow 
it  upon  the  cause  of  the  moderates. 

August  loth  had  put  the  Girondins  temporarily  in 
power.  On  September  2ist  the  Convention  superseded 
the  Legislative  Assembly.  The  Girondins  formed  the 
Conservative  party,  with  Brissot,  Vergniaud,  and  Gaudet 
at  their  head.  On  the  Left  were  the  extremists,  the 


326  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Montagnards,  led  by  Robespierre,  Marat,  Danton, 
the  Due  d'Orleans,  now  called  Philippe  Egalite,  and 
Th£roigne's  former  friend,  Collot  d'Herbois.  The 
hostility  was  acute,  and,  taking  into  consideration 
the  trend  of  affairs,  could  have  but  one  end.  It  was 
the  desire  of  the  Moderates  to  destroy  the  ascendancy 
of  those  whom  they  believed  to  be  responsible  for  the 
massacres,  and  to  disperse  the  hired  bands  of  assassins 
who  were  giving  expression  to  the  feeling  of  revenge 
dominating  the  masses.  This  task  was  no  easy  one. 
Against  them  were  the  triumvirate  of  front-rank  repub- 
licans, Robespierre,  Danton,  and  Marat.  More 
organising  power  and  diplomacy,  less  brilliancy  and 
oratory,  would  have  been  needed  by  the  Girondins  to 
bring  to  book  such  strong  and  obstinate  antagonists. 
Between  the  extreme  parties  there  vacillated  and  tem- 
porised the  Centre  of  the  Convention.  Hating  Marat 
and  all  his  works,  yet  dreading  the  power  of  the 
Commune,  they  extended  no  definite  help  to  the  Right. 
The  struggle,  often  renewed,  yet  never  decisive, 
gradually  strengthened  the  position  of  the  Montag- 
nards, to  whom  the  entire  sympathies  of  the  Jacobins 
were  now  given — no  mean  support,  taking  into  con- 
sideration that  the  galleries  of  the  house  were  usually 
filled  with  their  adherents,  who  noisily  shouted  down 
the  Girondins,  whilst  encouraging  their  opponents  with 
applause. 

The  internal  situation,  being  thus  unstable,  was 
much  complicated  by  the  position  of  foreign  affairs. 
For  a  while  the  French  had  been  successful  in  the 
battlefield.  War  had  been  declared  against  the  King 
of  Sardinia,  and  French  troops  occupied  Savoy.  Cus- 


Brissotine  327 

tine,  with  18,000  men,  had  succeeded  in  driving  the 
Prussians  before  him  in  Lorraine,  capturing  Mainz  and 
Frankfort.  The  allied  army  retreating,  Dumouriez  set 
out  to  invade  Belgium. 

At  this  point  a  vague  rumour  is  heard  of  The- 
roigne.  In  the  Correspondance  Litteraire  Secrete  of 
October  2oth  a  note  states  that  she  had  returned  to 
her  native  country  just  when  the  army  of  Dumouriez 
was  facing  the  Prussians  there  and  about  to  make 
war  on  the  Low  Country.  A  strange  report  to  have 
come  into  print  if  it  contained  no  truth,  yet  it  is 
not  substantiated  by  any  biographer.  Dumouriez, 
having  left  Paris  on  October  lyth,  reached  Liege  on 
November  27th.  On  the  9th  of  that  month  Theroigne 
wrote  a  letter  from  Paris  to  Perregaux,  from  which  it 
is  clear  that  she  was  in  worse  financial  straits  than 
ever  before,  for  she  sent  a  messenger  with  an  appeal 
to  No.  9,  Rue  Mirabeau,  addressed  to  "  Citizen  Perre- 
gaux,  or  to  his  clerk,  should  he  be  absent,"  in  the 
following  urgent  terms :  "  Citizen,  I  beg  you  will 
give  the  hundred  livres  you  promised  me  yesterday  to 
the  woman  who  brings  this  letter."  On  January  28th 
following  she  made  another  application  to  M.  de  Lim- 
bourg,  friend  of  the  Baron  de  Selys,  who  was  then 
at  Theux,  near  Liege,  about  her  jewels.  This  note 
was  signed  "  La  Citoyenne  Theroigne,"  and  addressed 
from  the  Rue  Saint-Honore,  No.  273,  near  the 
Jacobins.  By  that  time  Dumouriez  was  back  in  Paris. 
If,  therefore,  she  had  really  been  with  his  army,  the 
visit  to  her  own  country  was  a  short  one  and  can  have 
had  but  little  significance.  At  any  rate,  the  conqueror 
of  Jemappes  had  no  great  opinion  of  her  ability,  for, 


328  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

in  his  "  Memoirs,"  after  especially  praising  Mme 
Roland  and  Mme  Necker,  he  classes  Mile  la  Brousse, 
Mme  de  Stael,  Mme  Condorcet,  Pastoret,  Coigny,  and 
Theroigne  as  "  either  artful  females,  like  those  who 
haunted  the  courts  of  former  times,  or  differing  in 
nothing  from  the  vulgar  and  furious  women  of  the 
faubourgs  of  Paris." 

Between  August  loth,  then,  and  the  beginning  of 
May  1793,  Theroigne  has  baffled  her  biographers. 
More  important  personages  were  commanding  atten- 
tion. The  execution  of  the  King  in  January,  the 
anguish  of  the  Queen,  the  slow  crushing  of  the 
Girondins,  the  rise  of  the  Montagnards,  kept  every 
chronicler  busy.  Theroigne  was  doubtless  living  in 
the  rooms  near  the  Jacobins,  frequenting  the  clubs, 
perhaps  holding  gatherings  of  her  own  and  mingling 
more  or  less  conspicuously  with  the  street  crowds  in 
these,  some  of  the  most  anxious  months  in  all  the 
history  of  the  Revolution.  On  the  whole,  she  had 
probably  a  good  reason  for  remaining  comparatively 
quiet.  In  the  spring  the  position  of  the  Girondins 
was  becoming  critical.  Failing  in  their  foreign  policy, 
in  their  attempt  to  save  the  King,  as  well  as  in  main- 
taining any  pretence  of  internal  equilibrium,  they  were 
tottering  before  the  downfall. 

At  this  hour  of  internal  dissension,  of  wavering  in 
the  sections,  of  military  disaster  (caused  in  part  by 
Dumouriez's  treachery  in  allying  himself  with  Coburg), 
of  rebellion  in  La  Vendee,  of  the  interference  of 
England  under  Pitt's  policy,  of  utter  lawlessness  and 
anarchy,  Theroigne  chose  to  declaim  a  stirring  appeal 
to  the  sections,  exhorting  them  to  rally  and  make  a 


Brissotine  329 

final  stand.  There  was  much  of  her  usual  fire,  of  her 
wonderful  power  to  carry  her  audience  with  her,  in 
the  speech,  which  was  afterwards  printed  and  placarded 
on  the  walls  throughout  the  city.  Although  diffuse 
and  containing  many  grammatical  errors,  its  fervour 
outweighs  such  deficiencies.  It  is  a  typical  publication 
of  that  day,  and  throws  a  glaring  light  upon  the 
desperate  condition  of  affairs  and  the  internal  disunion 
of  the  country.  It  has  rarely,  if  ever,  been  quoted 
in  full,  and  not  at  all  in  English.  Addressed  to 
the  Forty-eight  Sections,  it  was  printed  by  Dufart, 
Rue  Saint-Honore,  on  blue-grey  paper,  and  runs  as 
follows  : 

"  Citizens  !  Hear  me  !  I  am  not  going  to  utter 
fine  phrases  ;  I  am  going  to  tell  you  the  pure  and 
simple  truth.  Where  do  we  stand  ?  All  the  con- 
flicting passions  which  have  been  aroused  are  liable 
to  carry  us  away.  We  are  almost  on  the  edge  of 
the  precipice.  Citizens,  let  us  stop  and  reflect.  It  is 
time.  On  my  return  from  Germany,  almost  eighteen 
months  ago,  I  told  you  that  the  Emperor  had  a  pro- 
digious number  of  agents  here  to  sow  discord  amongst 
us,  in  order  to  prepare  civil  war  at  a  distance,  and 
that  his  plan  was  to  cause  it  to  break  out  at  the 
moment  when  his  satellites  should  be  ready  to  make 
a  general  effort  to  invade  our  territory.  That  is  where 
we  stand  !  They  have  reached  the  point  of  a  denoue- 
ment, and  we  are  ready  to  fall  into  the  trap.  The 
preliminary  altercations  of  civil  war  have  taken  place 
already  in  some  sections.  Pay  attention,  then,  and  let 
us  examine  calmly  who  are  the  instigators,  in  order 
that  we  may  recognise  our  enemies. 


33°  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

"  Misfortune  be  on  your  head,  citizens,  if  you  allow 
such  scenes  to  be  renewed.  If  people  come  to  fisticuffs, 
and  use  abusive  language,  unworthy  of  citizens,  they 
will  soon  go  farther,  and  I  can  foresee  that  their 
passions  will  be  heated  to  such  a  point  that  it  will 
no  longer  be  in  your  power  to  hinder  the  explosion. 
These  manoeuvres  have  three  aims — civil  war,  there 
is  no  doubt,  that  of  justifying  the  calumnies  of  kings, 
and  of  their  slaves,  who  pretend  that  it  is  not  possible 
that  the  people  can  assemble  to  exercise  its  sovereignty 
without  abusing  it.  This  is  a  branch  of  the  great 
conspiracy  against  democracy. 

a  Citizens,  let  us  grasp  democracy  so  firmly  that 
it  can  never  escape  us.  Baffle  these  intrigues  by  your 
rectitude,  your  justice,  and  your  wisdom.  By  these 
means  you  will  give  the  lie  to  your  calumniators. 

"What  about  their  wish  to  detain,  for  as  long  as 
possible,  the  remainder  of  the  contingent  which  Paris 
ought  to  furnish  to  march  against  the  rebels  in  the 
Vendee  ?  They  desire,  it  would  appear,  that  instead 
of  carrying  help  to  our  brothers  they  should  have 
to  come  amongst  us  to  restore  harmony.  It  is  actu- 
ally the  aim  of  the  King's  agents  to  create  a  diversion, 
to  weaken  us  by  setting  one  against  the  other,  for, 
whilst  we  flew  at  one  another's  throats,  the  rebels — 
backed  up  by  the  English,  who  would  not  be  long 
in  descending  upon  our  shores,  if  the  intrigues  of 
Pitt  continue  to  shackle  us,  and  to  hinder  us  from 
seriously  considering  our  position,  during  that  time — the 
rebels,  I  say,  who,  to  our  shame  be  it  known,  are  more 
united  and  firm  in  defending  despotism  and  religious 
prejudices  than  we  are  to  defend  liberty,  will  make 


Brissotine  331 

better  progress  than  we  are  able  to  calculate,  because 
we  have  not  their  passionate  force,  since  men  who 
have  placed  themselves  midway  between  victory  and 
death  fight  in  desperation.  In  agreement  with  the 
Imperialists,  the  Prussians,  and  the  coalition  of  powers, 
they  will  advance  from  every  side.  Our  armies  and 
our  generals,  not  knowing  if  they  are  fighting  for 
the  Republic,  or  for  the  parties,  or  for  a  tyrant  whom 
they  justly  fear  to  see  raise  himself  as  in  Rome  to 
put  an  end  to  the  discords,  will  grow  discouraged. 

"  Besides,  the  feeble  citizens,  those  who  up  till  now 
have  remained  undecided,  but  who  would  declare 
themselves  if  our  unity  and  strength  received  a  strong 
impetus,  discouraged  by  these  same  motives  and  seduced 
by  perfidious  promises  such  as  are  contained  in  the 
Proclamation  of  Coburg,  would  remain  in  their  waver- 
ing state.  And  so  if  we  fall  into  the  trap  prepared 
for  us,  and  the  kings  succeed  in  producing  an  outburst 
of  civil  war  amongst  the  most  fiery  citizens,  and 
seducing  or  discouraging  the  others,  how  shall  we  save 
ourselves  from  their  satellites  ?  How  shall  we  stem 
this  torrent  of  hostility  on  the  part  of  enemies  who  will 
combine  their  efforts  at  the  very  moment  when  we 
shall  be  most  divided  against  ourselves?  Oh,  terrible 
thought  !  It  is  impossible  to  pursue  it. 

"  Citizens,  let  us  stop  and  reflect  or  we  are  lost. 
The  moment  has  arrived  when  it  is  to  the  interest 
of  all  to  reunite,  to  sacrifice  our  hates  and  our  passions 
for  the  public  welfare.  If  the  voice  of  the  country,  the 
sweet  hope  of  fraternity,  does  not  inspire  us,  let  us 
consider  our  closest  interests.  All  united,  we  are  none 
too  strong  to  repulse  our  numerous  enemies  from 


332  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

without,  and  those  who  have  already  raised  the  standard 
of  rebellion.  Nevertheless  I  warn  you  that  our  enemies 
will  make  no  distinction  between  the  parties  ;  we  shall 
all  be  confounded  on  the  day  of  vengeance.  I  can  say 
that  there  is  not  a  single  patriot  who  has  made  himself 
conspicuous  during  the  Revolution  concerning  whom 
I  have  not  been  questioned.  All  the  inhabitants  of 
Paris  are  indiscriminately  proscribed,  and  I  have  heard 
those  who  wished  to  make  me  depose  against  the 
patriots  say  a  thousand  times  that  it  would  be  necessary 
to  exterminate  half  the  French  to  subdue  the  other 
half.  To  exterminate  us,  vile  slaves  !  It  is  you  we 
should  exterminate.  Danger  is  going  to  reunite  us, 
and  we  are  going  to  show  you  what  men  who  desire 
liberty,  and  who  work  for  the  cause  of  the  human  race, 
can  do.  We  shall  all  march  forth,  rich  and  poor  alike, 
and  those  who,  having  the  necessary  means,  send  sub- 
stitutes will  be  covered  with  infamy.  Surely,  then, 
it  is  in  vain,  tyrants  of  the  earth,  that  you  send  your 
agents  here,  that  you  scatter  your  gold  !  The  French 
are  too  clever  to  be  caught  in  the  trap  you  have  set  for 
them,  and  to  go  astray.  We  desire  liberty,  and  will 
defend  ourselves  with  our  last  drops  of  blood.  Eternal 
justice  is  on  our  side,  and  only  lies  and  crime  on  yours. 
Judge  your  cause  and  ours,  and  say  to  whom  shall 
be  the  victory. 

"  The  smallest  things  sometimes  lead  to  the  greatest. 
The  Roman  women  disarmed  Coriolanus  and  saved 
their  country. 

"  Recollect,  citizens,  that  previous  to  August  loth 
not  one  of  you  broke  the  silken  thread  which  separated 
the  terrace  of  the  Feuillants  from  the  Tuileries  gardens. 


Brissotine  333 

Sometimes  the  least  thing  will  stay  the  most  forcible 
outpouring  of  passions  with  greater  success  than  all  the 
force  that  might  be  opposed  to  it. 

c<  Consequently  I  propose  that  in  each  section  there 
shall  be  chosen  six  of  the  most  virtuous  citoyennes,  the 
gravest   for   their  age,  to    conciliate    and    reunite    the 
citizens,    to    remind    them    of  the   dangers    by  which 
the   country  is   threatened.     They   shall  wear  a  wide 
sash,  on  which  will  be  inscribed  the  words  c  Friendship 
and  Fraternity.'    Every  time  there  is  a  general  assembly 
of  the  section,   they  shall  gather  for   the  purpose  of 
calling  to  order  every  citizen  who   stands  aside    and 
who  does   not  respect  the  liberty  of  opinions,  which 
is  so  necessary  in  forming  a  good  public  spirit.     Those 
who  have  gone  astray,  but  nevertheless  have  good  inten- 
tions, and  love  their  country,  will  be  silent.     But  if  those 
of  bad  faith  who  have  been  bribed  by  the  aristocrats, 
by  the  enemies  of  the  democracy,  and  the  agents  of  the 
king   to    interrupt,  to    speak  abusively,  and   to    come 
to  blows,  show  no  more  respect  for  the  voices  of  the 
citoyennes  than  for  that  of  the  president,  we  shall  at 
least  have  the  means  of  knowing  them.     And  a  note 
can  be  taken  of  their  names  in  order  that  inquiries  may 
be   prosecuted   on   their   account.      These    citoyennes 
can   be  changed  every  month.     Those  who  show  the 
highest  virtue,  firmness,  and  patriotism  in  the  glorious 
ministry  of  reuniting    the    citizens,   and   of  obtaining 
respect  for  the  liberty  of  opinions,  might  be  re-elected 
for  the  space   of  a  year.     Their  reward  would  be  to 
have  a  special  place  at  our  national  fetes,  and  to  super- 
intend the  educational  institutions  consecrated  to  our 
sex. 


334  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

"  There,  citizens,  is  an  idea  which  I  submit  to  your 


notice." 


The  nature  of  Theroigne's  plans  for  those  of  her 
own  sex  who  could  share  in  the  active  work  of  the 
Revolution  had  undergone  a  distinct  modification  since 
1792.  She  no  longer  desired  that  women  should  arm 
and  fight  side  by  side  with  men  ;  it  was  better  that 
they  should  occupy  themselves  with  the  spreading  of 
propaganda  and  bringing  encouragement  to  those  who 
vacillated. 

This  was  the  work  she  wished  her  sisters  to  do, 
and  to  this  she  urged  them  with  all  the  strength 
she  possessed.  But  as  far  as  can  be  judged  her  propo- 
sitions were  not  received  with  enthusiasm.  They  were 
too  openly  Girondist,  although  the  Gironde  is  not 
mentioned  in  her  speech.  The  broadside  is  dated  only 
by  internal  evidence.  The  Proclamation  of  Coburg 
was  issued  on  April  5th,  1793,  but  there  are  still  later 
references :  firstly  to  the  scenes  of  violence  at  the  begin- 
ning of  May  in  various  sections  which  had  been  provoked 
by  the  Decree  of  the  Commune  on  the  ist  of  the 
month  proclaiming  the  necessity  of  raising  a  Parisian 
army  to  march  against  the  Vendeans  ;  as  well  as  to  a 
supplementary  decree  by  the  Convention  on  the  8th, 
relative  to  the  numbers  which  each  section  was  to 
furnish.  The  exact  date  is  of  importance,  because 
Theroigne  had  thrown  her  last  effective  die  in  the 
cause  of  liberty.  Within  a  week  of  her  proud  protest 
she  was  to  be  utterly  humbled,  and  her  dignity  was 
to  have  fled  from  her  for  ever.  Like  many  another 
who  suffered  for  an  excess  of  zeal,  she  was  destroyed 


THEROIGNE   AT   THE   SALPETRIERE. 
From  an  engraving  at  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale  after  a  drawing  by  Gabriel. 


335 


Brissotine  337 

by  the  very  passions  she  had  been  instrumental  in 
arousing.  An  event  occurred  in  the  second  week  of 
May  which  was  a  downward  step  in  her  deplorable  fate. 

There  were  women  in  Paris  who  were  growing  ever 
more  lawless,  and  who  were  banding  together  in  various 
societies  for  more  or  less  nefarious  purposes. 

From  the  beginning  of  the  year  the  more  violent  of 
them  had  formed  a  political  organisation  called  the 
Club  de  Citoyennes  Revolutionnaires.  They  demanded 
a  hall  for  their  meetings,  they  sent  deputations  to  the 
authorities,  they  conspired  riotously  to  bring  about  the 
downfall  of  the  Girondins.  They  did  duty  as  sentries, 
they  crowded  the  tribunes  of  the  Conventions,  and 
influenced  the  debates  by  their  shrieks  and  vocifera- 
tions. They  were  only  one  step  less  abandoned  than 
the  so-called  furies  orTricoteuses,  Robespierre's  knitting- 
women,  who  were  drawn  from  the  scum  of  Paris — 
women  from  the  gutters,  from  the  thieves'  dens, 
viragoes  and  unfortunates.  No  deeds  that  could  be 
devised  were  too  criminal,  too  extravagant,  or  too 
outrageous  for  the  perpetration  of  these  outcasts. 
They  acted  as  spies,  they  escorted  prisoners  to  jail 
and  to  the  guillotine,  hurling  blasphemies  in  their 
tortured  ears;  they  danced  to  the  noisy,  wild  revolu- 
tionary songs,  and  gave  way  openly  to  drunkenness 
and  debauchery.  They  were  paid  for  hooting  and 
applauding,  for  demanding  revenge,  punishment,  death, 
or  destruction  according  to  the  signal  given  by  those 
who  employed  them,  and  distributed  amongst  them 
the  wages  of  their  shame. 

The  group  of  women  who  made  it  their  business  to 
do  the  dirty  work  of  the  Jacobins,  hounding  down  the 
20 


33  8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

Girondins,  gathering  both  within  and  without  the 
Convention,  mounting  guard  at  the  doors  to  intercept 
those  who  were  not  of  their  party,  opposing  all  by 
word  or  action  who  held  other  views  from  theirs,  had 
become  a  menacing  feature  of  the  days  of  trouble  and 
tumult  during  May.  On  the  I5th,  Theroigne,  passing 
along  the  terrace  of  the  Feuillants,  came  boldly  down 
the  street  and  close  to  the  door  of  the  Convention 
encountered  these  dangerous  women.  Exactly  what 
took  place  it  is  difficult  to  state,  but  a  conflict  between 
the  women  appears  to  have  arisen  on  the  subject  of 
Brissot.  The  restless,  scheming  journalist,  whom 
Carlyle  described  as  u  a  man  of  the  windmill  species 
that  grinds  always,  turning  towards  all  winds,  not  in 
the  steadiest  manner,"  had  been  hunted  out  of  the 
Jacobins  Club  in  the  previous  October,  and  since  that 
had  been  particularly  hated  by  the  extremists. 
Theroigne's  friendship  for  him,  or  at  least  her  sympathy 
with  his  aims,  was  no  secret.  <c  Down  with  Brissot 
and  the  Brissotins,"  cried  the  Megaeras,  perhaps  see- 
ing the  object  of  their  contempt  and  hatred.  Theroigne 
intervened,  calling  to  them  to  be  silent.  They  hooted 
and  derided  her.  Furious  and  outraged  by  their 
threats,  she  tried  to  gain  ascendancy  over  the  aggressive 
rabble  by  means  of  her  old  gift,  oratory.  But  the 
tongue  in  this  case  was  not  a  sufficiently  effective 
weapon  against  their  determination  to  inflict  physical 
chastisement.  She  had  no  other  resources.  The  ex- 
cited citoyennes  refused  to  listen.  Seizing  her  roughly, 
they  stripped  her  clothes  from  her  back,  and  beat  her 
unmercifully.  There  was  no  opportunity  for  self- 
defence  against  such  numbers.  Only  by  chance  was 


Brissotine  339 

she  rescued  in  the  nick  of  time,  and  thus  escaped  death. 
It  might  have  been  better  for  her  if  the  mad  and 
wicked  creatures  who  set  upon  her  had  then  and  there 
been  allowed  to  finish  their  gruesome  purpose. 

Among  the  accounts  of  the  affair  one  occurs  in  the 
Police  Report  of  May  1 6th,  describing  it  as  follows  : 

"  The  women  who  gather  at  the  doors  of  the  Con- 
vention yesterday  placed  a  detachment  of  their  body 
at  the  doors  of  the  first  tribunes  at  nine  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  to  hinder  the  women  favoured  by  the  deputies 
from  passing  in  with  admission  cards.  They  per- 
formed this  self-imposed  task  with  insolence  of  the 
worst  kind.  .  .  .  Citoyenne  Theroigne,  beaten  by 
these  furies,  told  them  she  would  sooner  or  later  make 
them  bite  the  dust." 

Another  is  to  be  found  in  the  Courrier  des  Departe- 
ments  of  May  lyth  : 

"  A  heroine  of  the  Revolution  experienced  a  slight 
check  the  day  before  yesterday  on  the  terrace  of  the 
Feuillants.  Mile  Theroigne,  who,  it  was  said,  was 
recruiting  women  for  the  Rolandin  faction,  unfortu- 
nately addressed  herself  to  the  followers  of  Robespierre 
and  of  Marat,  who,  not  wishing  to  augment  the  army 
of  Brissotins,  seized  the  female  recruiter  and  fusti- 
gated her  with  great  activity.  The  Guard  arrived  and 
saved  the  victim  from  the  fury  of  these  indecent 
maniacs.  Marat,  who  was  passing,  took  the  beaten 
one  under  his  protection." 

The  Revolutions  de  Paris  of  the  1 8th  says  :  <c  For  the 
last  few  days  a  number  of  women  have  been  policing 
the  Tuileries  gardens  and  the  corridors  of  the  National 
Convention.  They  have  taken  it  upon  themselves  to 


34°  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

examine  all  the  cockades  and  stop  the  people  whom 
they  suspect  of  wavering.  It  was  they  who  on  the 
1 5th  of  the  month  gave  the  whip  to  Theroigne,  calling 
her  Brissotine." 

The  story  told  by  Barras  in  his  "  Memoirs "  is 
somewhat  different,  but  is  interesting  because  it  ampli- 
fies the  suggestion  in  the  Courrier  des  Departements  that 
Marat  came  to  Theroigne's  rescue. 

"  One  of  the  early  feminine  notabilities  of  1789,  who 
had  not  ceased  to  bestir  herself,  Mile  Theroigne — 
very  well  known  in  Paris,  owing  especially  to  her 
democratic  sentiments  having  become  suspected  of 
backsliding — was  arrested  by  the  populace  and  brought 
before  the  committee  with  head-quarters  at  the  Feuil- 
lants  to  the  repeated  cries  of  c  To  a  lamp-post  with 
her  !  '  The  crowd  became  so  great,  so  considerable 
and  threatening,  that  the  members  of  the  committee 
despaired  of  saving  the  unfortunate  Amazon  ;  when 
Marat  arrived  on  the  scene  the  danger  was  imminent 
for  the  members  of  the  committee,  who  were  delaying 
handing  her  over  to  the  mercies  of  the  mob.  Marat 
said  to  them,  '  I  will  save  her/  Leading  Mile 
Theroigne  by  the  hand,  he  showed  himself  to  the 
enraged  people,  saying  :  c  Citizens,  are  you  bent  on 
attempting  the  life  of  a  woman  ?  Are  you  going  to 
sully  yourselves  with  such  a  crime  ?  The  law  alone 
has  the  right  to  strike.  Show  your  contempt  for  this 
courtesan  and  reserve  your  dignity,  citizens/  The 
word  of  the  friend  of  the  people  quieted  the  gathering. 
Marat,  taking  advantage  of  this  moment  of  calm, 
dragged  Mile  Theroigne  away  and  led  her  into  the  hall 
of  the  Convention,  his  bold  action  saving  her  life." 


Brissotine  341 

Among  the  many  accounts  of  the  assault  by  her 
historians  were  those  by  Michelet,  who  accused  the 
Montagnards  ;  by  Gabriel  her  contemporary,  who  spoke 
of  the  furies  of  the  guillotine,  Lamartine  following  his 
example  ;  the  Goncourts  say  by  Sans-Jupons  ;  Lalanne 
by  women  of  the  Societe  Fraternelle  ;  Restif  de  la 
Breton  by  the  royalist  women  of  the  Halles  ;  Duval, 
who  is  usually  amongst  the  most  vivid,  contented  him- 
self by  saying  that  she  was  attacked  u  by  the  crowd 
that  gathered  round  her."  As  to  the  result  of  her 
punishment  there  is  little  doubt.  For  weeks  Theroigne 
was  ill  and  wretched.  She  had  suffered  both  in  mind 
and  body.  Mederer,  when  he  had  examined  her  state 
of  health  at  Kufstein,  had  foreseen  that  excitement  and 
overstrain  were  dangerous  for  her  and  that  there  was  a 
tendency  to  mental  affliction.  He  might  have  warned 
her  that  in  throwing  herself  heart  and  soul  into  the 
people's  cause  she  would  be  stricken  by  a  fever  that 
would  attack  the  seat  of  reason  itself. 

One  of  the  most  reliable  pen-pictures  of  Theroigne 
was  written  at  this  period  by  George  Forster,  President 
of  the  University  of  Mainz,  who  was  nominated  by  the 
people  of  that  city  to  be  their  representative  at  Paris 
in  the  beginning  of  the  Revolution.  He  dwelt  on  her 
intellectual  gifts,  threw  light  upon  her  position,  and 
foreshadowed  the  brain  trouble  that  was  to  overtake 
her  before  long. 

"  Imagine,"  he  says,  "  a  five-  or  eight-and-twenty 
year-old  brown-haired  maiden,  with  the  most  candid 
face,  and  features  which  were  once  beautiful,  and  are 
still  partly  so,  and  a  simple  steadfast  character  full  of 
spirit  and  enthusiasm  ;  particularly  something  gentle 


342  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

in  eye  and  mouth.  Her  whole  being  is  wrapped  up 
in  her  love  of  liberty.  She  talked  much  about  the 
Revolution  ;  her  opinions  were  without  exception 
strikingly  accurate  and  to  the  point.  The  ministry  at 
Vienna  she  judged  with  a  knowledge  of  facts  which 
nothing  but  peculiar  readiness  of  observation  could 
have  given. 

"  She  is  from  Luxemburg,  and  is  naturally  most  eager 
for  the  freedom  of  her  own  country  and  for  Germany. 
She  speaks  nothing  but  French,  fluently  and  energeti- 
cally, though  not  altogether  correctly.  But  who  speaks 
it  correctly  now  ?  She  has  a  strong  thirst  for  instruc- 
tion ;  says  she  wishes  to  go  into  the  country  and 
there  study  to  supply  the  deficiencies  of  her  education. 
She  wishes  for  the  company  of  a  well-informed  man, 
who  can  read  and  write  well  ;  and  is  ready  to  give  him 
his  board  and  two  thousand  livres  a  year.  She  is  no 
more  than  a  peasant-girl,  she  said,  but  has  a  taste 
for  learning.  She  must  still  have  enough  to  live  upon, 
although  she  said  she  had  used  up  her  income,  for 
she  lives  in  quite  good  condition  here  and  keeps  a 
carriage. 

<c  Six  or  seven  weeks  ago  the  furies  who  sit  in  the 
tribunes  of  the  Convention  dragged  her  out  into  the 
garden  of  the  Tuileries,  beat  her  about  the  head  with 
stones,  and  would  have  drowned  her  in  the  basin  if 
help  had  not  fortunately  arrived.  But  since  that 
time  she  has  frightful  headaches  and  looks  wretchedly 
ill." 

The  worst  was  to  come. 


CHAPTER   X 

LA   SALPETRIERE 

FEW  of  the  revolutionaries  escaped  a  violent  end. 
Nearly  all  Theroigne's  associates  suffered  the 
final  penalty  of  the  law.  Brissot,  Barnave,  Saint-Just, 
and  Basire  were  guillotined.  Petion's  body  was  found 
partially  devoured  by  wild  dogs  in  a  field  whither  he 
had  fled  from  the  scaffold.  Romme  stabbed  himself 
to  escape  the  executioners,  Condorcet  took  poison  for 
the  same  purpose.  Collot  d'Herbois  was  deported. 
The  deaths  of  Robespierre,  Marat,  Danton  are  familiar 
to  every  one.  But  the  fate  that  was  meted  out  to 
Theroigne  was  as  tragic  as  all  these,  and  many  may 
agree  more  tragic  still. 

For  over  twenty  years  she  was  shut  up  in  a  mad- 
house, babbling  of  liberty,  of  equality,  and  of  the  rights 
of  man. 

Many  of  her  biographers  stated  that  she  went  mad 
as  a  result  of  the  ill  treatment  at  the  hands  of  the 
Jacobins  women ;  Lamartine,  de  Goncourt,  and  Michelet 
are  amongst  the  number.  Beaulieu  says  that  soon  after 
the  assault  she  was  in  an  asylum  ;  but  Forster,  as  we 
know,  saw  her  about  two  months  later,  and  there 
appeared  to  be  nothing  worse  the  matter  with  her  than 
that  she  complained  of  bad  headaches. 

On   July    5th   she   was    still  attending  to  financial 

343 


344  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

matters  and  wrote  a  business  letter  to  MM.  Le  Couteulx 
et  Cie,  bankers  to  the  Baron  de  Selys,  about  the  settle- 
ment of  a  sum  of  one  thousand  five  hundred  and 
fifty-six  livres  claimed  by  the  Baron.  The  letter 
contains  reference  to  the  much-disputed  jewellery.  A 
receipt  was  sent  to  her  on  the  9th  of  the  month.  That 
autumn — it  was  the  autumn  that  witnessed  the  execu- 
tion of  Marie-Antoinette — perhaps  not  till  early  in  the 
following  year,  she  suffered  from  mental  aberration, 
which  caused  her  to  commit  some  absurdity  or  other 
which  led  to  her  arrest.  Her  brother  Joseph,  whom 
she  had  helped  to  train  as  an  artist  in  Rome,  published 
a  notice  in  the  spring  of  1794,  warning  the  authorities 
that  his  sister's  mental  condition  did  not  warrant  her 
administering  her  own  estate,  and  begging  that  she 
might  be  put  under  restraint  for  the  sake  of  her  own 
safety  and  of  those  about  her.  It  is  quite  probable 
that  he  knew  the  risk  she  ran  of  imprisonment,  and 
feared  lest  harsher  treatment  would  be  her  lot  when 
confined  in  a  dungeon  than  if  she  were  placed  in  a 
madhouse.  An  order  to  this  effect  was  made  out  on 
June  3Oth,  1794,  but  by  that  time  Theroigne  had  been 
in  a  house  of  detention  for  three  days.  Her  room 
on  the  fourth  floor  of  the  Rue  Honore,  No.  273, 
had  been  entered,  her  papers  seized  and  sealed,  and 
amongst  her  possessions  was  a  sabre  which  the  police 
confiscated. 

Then  Joseph  Terwagne,  perhaps  fearing  the  guillotine 
for  her,  again  addressed  the  authorities.  He  informed 
them  that  the  mental  state  of  his  sister  being  incurable 
madness,  he  was  prepared  to  take  entire  charge  of  her, 
and  desired  to  claim  her  liberty.  He  offered  to  make 


La  Salpetrtere  345 

himself  entirely  responsible,  and  to  provide  her  with 
every  form  of  assistance  which  humanity  and  fraternity 
could  suggest.  Moreover,  he  promised  to  take  every 
precaution  rendered  necessary  and  prudent  by  her 
condition.  He  was  convinced  that  her  arrest  was 
the  result  of  actions  performed  under  aberration  of 
intellect. 

On  September  2oth,  1794,  her  madness  was  certified 
to  as  of  some  standing,  and  she  was  removed  from 
the  house  of  detention  in  the  Section  Le  Peletier  and 
placed  in  an  asylum  in  the  Faubourg  Marceau,  no  great 
distance  from  her  brother's  abode  in  the  Rue  Croule- 
barbe.  In  her  lucid  moments  she  appealed  to  friends 
or  strangers  to  assist  her  in  getting  free.  Once  she 
leaned  out  of  the  window  and  called  to  a  neighbour, 
who  interested  himself  unavailingly  in  her  position. 
Another  time  she  had  addressed  a  letter  to  Saint-Just, 
the  olive-complexioned  deputy  for  Aisne,  which  was 
afterwards  found  among  his  papers,  and  which  bears 
evidences  of  a  wandering  mind.  This  letter  was 
written  two  days  before  Saint- Just  shared  the  fate  of 
Couthon  and  Robespierre  on  July  28th,  1794. 

"  Citizen  Saint-Just,"  she  writes,  "  I  am  still  under 
arrest.  I  have  lost  precious  time.  I  have  written  to 
you  to  beg  you  to  send  me  two  hundred  livres,  and 
to  come  and  see  me.  I  received  no  reply.  I  do  not 
feel  much  gratitude  towards  the  patriots  for  leaving  me 
here,  bereft  of  everything.  It  seems  to  me  that  they 
ought  not  to  be  indifferent  that  I  am  here,  and  that 
I  am  doing  nothing.  I  sent  you  a  letter  in  which  I  say 
that  it  is  I  who  said  I  had  friends  in  the  palace  of  the 
Emperor,  that  I  was  unjust  as  far  as  Citizen  Bosque  was 


346  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

concerned,  and  that  I  am  sorry  about  it.     They  told 
me  that  I  had  forgotten  to  sign  the  letter.     That  was 
want  of  attention  on  my  part.     I  should  be  charmed  to 
see  you  for  a  moment.     If  you  cannot  come  to  me, 
if  your  time  does  not  permit  it,  could  I  not  be  accom- 
panied on  the  way  to  see  you  ?     I  have  a  thousand 
things  to  say  to  you.     It  is  necessary  to  establish  the 
union  ;  it  is  necessary  for  me  to  develop  all  my  plans, 
to  continue  to  write  as  I  have  written.     I  have  great 
things  to  say.     I  can   assure  you   that  I  have   made 
progress.     I  have  neither  paper,   nor  light,  nor  any- 
thing ;    but  even   then  it  would  be   necessary  that   I 
should  be  free  to  be  able  to  write.     It  is  impossible  to 
do  anything  here.     My  stay  has  taught  me  something, 
but  if  I  remain  longer,  if  I  remain  longer  without  doing 
anything,  without  publishing  anything,  I  should  learn 
to  despise  the  patriots  and  the  civic  crown.     You  know 
that  there  has  been  discussion,  both  about  you  and  me, 
and  that  the  proof  of  union  is  in  the  results.     There 
must  be  fine  writings  to  give  strong  impulses.     You 
know   my   principles.     I    am   grieved   never   to    have 
spoken  to  you  before  my  arrest.     I  presented  myself 
at  your  house.     They  told  me  that  you  were  itmhagt. 
It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  patriots  will  not  leave  me  a 
victim  to  intrigue.     I  can  still  repair  everything  if  you 
will  aid  me.     But  it  is  necessary  that  I  should  be  where 
I  shall  be  respected,  for  they  neglect  no  means  of  show- 
ing contempt  for  me.     I  have  already  spoken  to  you 
of  my  plan.    Whilst  waiting  until  this  can  be  arranged, 
until  I  have  found  a  house  where  I  can  be  safe  from 
intrigue,  where  I  can  be  worthily  surrounded  by  virtue, 
I  beg  that  they  will  send  me  back  home. 


La  Salpetrtere  347 

"  I  shall  be  under  a  thousand  obligations  if  you  will 
lend  me  two  hundred  livres. 
"  Farewell." 

By  this  time  Theroigne  had  been  reduced  to  a  sad 
state  of  helplessness.  Carlyle  describes  it  well : 

"  The  poor  demoiselle's  head  and  nervous  system, 
none  of  the  soundest,  is  so  tattered  and  fluttered  that 
it  will  never  recover  ;  but  flutter  worse  and  worse  till 
it  crack  :  and  within  year  and  day  we  hear  of  her 
in  madhouse  and  strait-waistcoat,  which  proves  per- 
manent !  Such  brown-locked  figure  did  flutter,  and 
inarticulately  jabber  and  gesticulate,  little  able  to  speak 
the  obscure  meaning  it  had,  through  some  segment  of 
the  eighteenth  century  of  time." 

Villiers  saw  her  at  the  Hotel  Dieu  in  1797,  and 
described  the  vacant  stare,  the  meaningless  utterances 
which  fell  from  her  lips.  On  December  9th  of  that 
year  she  was  transferred  to  the  Salpetriere ;  from 
there  she  went,  on  January  nth,  1800,  to  the  Petites 
Maisons,  where  she  remained  until  her  return  to  the 
Salpetriere  on  December  7th,  1807. 

Her  romantic  chroniclers  follow  her  even  into  the 
retreat  of  the  insane. 

The  letters  "  published  by  the  Vicomte  de  V y," 

written  in  reality  by  Lamothe  Langon,  purport  to  be 
her  correspondence  when  at  La  Salpetriere.  Their 
author  claims  that  they  contain  the  charms  of  fiction 
united  with  positive  reality,  of  history  more  engaging 
than  romance.  He  made  her  say  :  "  The  tranquillity 
of  the  spot  is  insupportable.  One  might  sleep  through 
the  whole  day.  The  cannon  of  the  Pont  Neuf  never 


34 8  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

thunders.     There  is  no  singing  of  the  c  Marseillaise ' 
or  the  c  Carmagnole '  in  the  neighbouring  streets.  .  .  . 
The    sovereign    people,    where    are    they  ? "     Strange 
visions  of  crowds  appeared  to  her  in  that  quiet  cell. 
She  rarely  knew  she  was  alone.     "  All  our  old  friends 
become  our  enemies  ;  follow  one  after  the  other.  .  .  . 
If  you  could  only  see  how  they  look  at  me  ;  if  you 
could    only    hear    their    plaints  !    .    .    .    Danton,    for 
example !    .    .    .    And    Suleau — Suleau.      He   rarely 
leaves  me.     He    speaks    little  ;    he    stands  apart  ;    he 
places    himself    by    the    window,    against    the    door. 
Sometimes  he   appears   enveloped    in  the   curtains  of 
my  bed,  only  his  mutilated  and  bleeding  head  show- 
ing. .  .  .  The  rascal !     He  mocks  at  me,  he  offends 
my  sight.  .  .  .  And   I,    sometimes    I    am   frightened. 
Sometimes  I  charge  at  him,  when  he  is  not  looking, 
and   bury  my  finger-nails   deep    in   his  expressionless 
eyes." 

Other  ghostly  visitors  appear  :  Robespierre,  his 
brother,  Robespierre  le  Jeune,  Egalite,  and  Mirabeau. 
"  The  Count  chuckles,  the  Prince  grinds  his  teeth 
together,  the  lawyer  plays  foolish  tricks.  They  say 
that  their  suffering  is  great.  They  are  experiencing 
terrible  pains  and  penalties  below.  They  await  me." 
And  they  vanish. 

Another  chronicler  gives  a  still  more  lurid  glimpse 
of  her  madness. 

"  She  was  seized  with  a  fever,"  he  says,  "  during 
which  she  raved  of  nothing  but  bloody  heads  and  of 
devils  demanding  her  as  their  prey.  'Do  you  not 
see/  she  would  exclaim,  'hell  open  under  my  feet, 
ready  to  swallow  me  up !  Do  you  not  see  Suleau, 


La  Salpetrtere  349 

with  his  head  on,  though  bleeding,  calling  out  to  me, 
"  Theroigne,  you  are  my  assassin  !  the  furies  of  hell 
are  waiting  for  you,  to  torment  you  through  all 
eternity"!1" 

But  enough  of  such  sensationalism. 

Towards  1808  Theroigne  had  periods  of  greater 
lucidity,  and  recognised  among  the  visitors  at  the 
Salpetriere  an  official  personage  who  had  played  a  part 
in  the  Revolution.  She  heaped  insults  on  his  head, 
reproaching  him  for  having  betrayed  the  cause  of  the 
people.  Several  names  have  been  suggested  for  this 
individual,  among  them  those  of  Sieyes  and  of  Reg- 
naud  de  Saint-Jean  d'Angely.  At  this  time  the  latter 
was  busying  himself  on  her  behalf,  being  anxious  to 
improve  her  condition  if  possible. 

On  March  2ist,  1808,  he  addressed  a  letter  to  the 
Prefect  of  the  Department  of  Ourthe  : 

"  Monsieur,"  he  wrote,  "  I  beg  you  to  make  every 
inquiry  possible  at  Mericourt,  near  to  Liege,  concern- 
ing the  family  of  Mile  Theroigne. 

"  She  has  some  money  of  her  own,  yet  her  relatives 
have  left  her  in  the  hospital  without  resources  and  in 
a  most  deplorable  condition. 

"  I  beg  you  will  obtain  all  possible  information  as 
quickly  as  you  can  concerning  the  goods  possessed  and 
still  in  the  possession  of  Mile  Theroigne. 

"  It  is  believed  that  this  unfortunate  being  has  been 
robbed." 

The  Prefect  of  Ourthe  put  the  matter  into  the 
hands  of  a  subordinate,  the  sous-Prefect  of  Huy,  on 
March  26th,  1808  ;  but  it  was  not  until  May  1809 
that  a  reply  came  to  this  appeal.  It  was  written  to 


35°  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

the  sous-Prefect   of  Huy  on    April    28th,    1809,   by 
Sieur  N.  Biron,  the  Mayor  of  Filat,  as  follows  : 

"When  I  received  the  letter  which  you  did  me 
the  honour  to  write  me  on  the  I9th  of  this  month, 
I  hastened,  sir,  to  make  every  inquiry  possible  con- 
cerning the  supposed  village  of  Mericourt,  where 
the  family  of  Mile  Theroigne  were  said  to  have 
resided. 

"  However,  no  village  of  this  name  exists  in  the 
district  of  Xhoris,  nor  in  the  canton  of  Ferrieres. 
But  in  seeking  more  deeply  into  the  object  of  your 
inquiry,  I  have  obtained  some  information  concerning 
a  lady  who  was  known  by  this  name,  and  who  may 
have  been  a  native  of  Mericourt  in  the  department  of 
Sambre  and  Meuse. 

u  At  the  rise  of  the  Revolution  there  arrived  at 
Xhoris  an  adventuress,  dressed  in  a  riding-habit  and 
known  as  Theroigne  de  Mericourt,  who  was  visiting 
some  of  her  relatives  of  the  name  of  Terwagne  in  this 
district. 

c<  This  lady  spent  some  months  in  this  country,  and 
I  believe  I  saw  her  myself  sometimes  in  masculine 
clothes  flirting  with  the  coquettes  of  the  neighbour- 
hood, and  sometimes  in  clothes  more  befitting  her  sex 
and  in  the  company  of  certain  frivolous  young  men. 
She  suddenly  disappeared,  and  they  said  that  she  went 
back  to  Paris,  from  which  city  she  apparently  had 
come  thither." 

Then  he  went  on  to  say  that  the  name  of  the  family 
was  Terwagne,  but  at  that  distance  it  was  impossible 
for  him  to  obtain  better  information  concerning  her 
relatives,  although  at  Xhoris  she  might  have  distant 


La  Salpetrtere  35 1 

connections  who  were  living  a  simple  and  regular  life 
on  small  but  definite  means. 

During  the  interval  which  had  occurred  since  his 
inquiry  and  the  answer  to  it,  Regnaud  de  Saint-Jean 
d'Angely  had  become  Minister  of  State  and  might 
no  doubt  have  used  his  authority  to  ameliorate  the 
conditions  in  which  Theroigne  was  living.  Perhaps 
he  had  forgotten  her  existence  by  then,  or,  which  is 
quite  as  probable,  the  authorities  assured  him  that  the 
manner  in  which  she  lived  was  more  that  of  her  own 
choice  than  of  necessity.  No  change  was  made  in  her 
surroundings. 

The  last  account  of  her  is  a  medical  one  written  by 
Esquirol  in  his  work  on  "  Insanity,"  but  it  gives  an 
exaggerated  picture  of  her  actions  in  the  Revolution. 

u  T£roenne  or  Theroigne  de  Mericourt,"  he  writes, 
"  was  a  celebrated  courtesan,  born  in  the  city  of 
Luxemburg.  She  was  of  medium  height,  had  chest- 
nut-coloured hair,  large  blue  eyes,  a  changeful  physiog- 
nomy, and  a  sprightly,  free,  and  even  elegant  carriage. 
The  girl,  in  the  opinion  of  some  of  honourable  birth, 
and  in  that  of  others  springing  from  the  rank  of 
courtesans,  acted  a  truly  deplorable  part  during  the 
first  years  of  the  Revolution.  She  was  then  from 
twenty-eight  to  thirty  years  of  age.  She  devoted  her- 
self to  the  various  chiefs  of  the  popular  party,  to 
whom  she  was  of  service  in  most  of  the  riotous  dis- 
turbances, and  attempted,  especially  on  the  5th  and 
6th  of  October,  1789,  to  corrupt  the  Regiment  of 
Flanders,  by  leading  into  its  ranks  women  of  ill-fame, 
and  by  distributing  money  among  the  soldiers.  In 
1790  she  was  sent  into  the  city  of  Liege  to  arouse  the 


352  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

people.  She  there  took  a  military  rank.  She  made 
herself  remarkable  among  this  unbridled  populace, 
which  was  sent  to  Versailles  on  the  5th  and  6th  of 
October,  1790.  The  Austrians  arrested  her  in  the 
month  of  January  1791.  She  was  conducted  to 
Vienna  and  confined  in  a  fortress.  The  Emperor 
Leopold  saw  her,  conversed  with  her,  and  caused  her 
to  be  set  at  liberty  in  December  of  the  same  year. 
She  returned  to  Paris,  and  once  more  appeared  upon 
the  stage  during  the  period  of  the  Revolution.  She 
then  made  herself  conspicuous  upon  the  terraces  of  the 
Tuileries,  and  on  the  rostrum,  haranguing  the  people 
with  boldness,  in  order  to  bring  them  back  to  moderation 
and  the  Constitution.  This  course  cannot  suit  her 
long.  The  Jacobins  shortly  repair  to  Teroenne,  and 
we  immediately  see  her  appear,  a  red  bonnet  upon  her 
head,  a  sword  by  her  side,  and  a  pike  in  her  hand, 
commanding  an  army  of  women.  She  took  an  active 
part  in  the  events  of  September  1792.  Although  it 
may  not  be  proved  that  she  participated  in  the  massa- 
cres, it  is  said,  nevertheless,  that  she  entered  the  court 
of  the  abbey  and  with  her  sword  cut  off  the  head  of 
an  unfortunate  man  whom  they  were  conducting  to 
the  tribunal  of  this  prison.  We  are  assured  that  it 
was  a  former  lover. 

"  When  the  Directory  was  established  and  popular 
associations  ceased,  Theroigne  lost  her  reason.  She 
was  taken  to  a  house  in  the  Suburb  St.  Marceau. 
They  found  among  the  papers  of  Saint-Just  a  letter 
from  her,  dated  July  26th,  1794,  in  which  signs  of 
a  wandering  intellect  are  shown.  In  November  1800 
she  was  sent  to  the  Salpetriere,  and  in  the  following 


La  Salpetrfere  353 

month  was  transferred  to  the  Petites  Maisons,  where 
she  remained  seven  years.  When  the  Administration 
of  Hospitals  caused  the  insane  to  be  removed  from  the 
Petites  Maisons,  Theroigne  returned  to  the  Salpetriere, 
September  1807.  She  was  then  about  forty-seven 
years  of  age.  At  the  time  of  her  admission  she  was 
very  much  agitated,  reviling  and  threatening  everybody, 
speaking  only  of  liberty,  of  committees,  of  public 
safety,  revolutionary  committees,  and  accusing  all  who 
approached  her  of  being  moderates  and  royalists.  In 
1808  a  distinguished  personage,  who  had  figured  as 
chief  of  a  party,  visited  the  Salpetriere.  Theroigne 
recognised  him,  raised  herself  from  the  bed  of  straw 
upon  which  she  was  lying,  and  overwhelmed  the  visitor 
with  abusive  language  ;  accusing  him  of  having 
abandoned  the  popular  party,  and  of  being  a  Moderate, 
to  whom  a  decree  of  the  Committee  of  Public  Safety  would 
soon  do  justice. 

<c  In  1810  she  becomes  more  composed,  and  falls 
into  a  state  of  dementia,  which  enables  us  to  observe 
traces  of  her  early  prevailing  ideas.  Theroigne  was- 
unwilling  to  wear  any  clothing.  Every  day,  both 
morning  and  evening,  and  many  times  a  day,  she 
waters  her  bed,  or  rather  the  straw  of  it,  with  several 
buckets  of  water,  lies  down,  and  covers  herself  with, 
her  sheet  only  in  summer,  and  with  both  sheet  and 
coverlid  in  winter.  She  amuses  herself  in  walking  with 
naked  feet  in  her  cell,  which  was  flagged  with  stone, 
and  inundated  with  water.  Severe  cold  causes  her  to 
change  this  regimen  in  no  respect.  Never  have  they 
succeeded  in  inducing  her  to  sleep  in  a  night  garment, 
nor  to  employ  a  second  covering.  During  the  last 

21 


354  A  Woman  of  the  Revolution 

three  years  of  her  life  she  was  provided  with  a  very 
large  morning  gown,  which,  however,  she  rarely  put 
on.  When  it  froze,  and  she  had  not  water  in 
abundance,  she  was  accustomed  to  break  the  ice,  and 
take  the  water  which  she  obtained  from  it  and  wet 
her  body,  particularly  her  feet. 

"  Although  in  a  small  and  gloomy  cell,  very  damp 
and  without  furniture,  she  enjoys  good  health,  and 
pretends  to  be  occupied  with  very  important  matters. 
She  smiles  at  persons  who  accost  her,  and  sometimes 
replies  hastily,  c  I  don't  know  you/  and  conceals 
herself  under  her  covering.  It  is  rare  that  she  replies 
correctly.  She  often  says,  '  I  do  not  know  ;  I  have 
forgotten.'  If  they  insist  she  becomes  impatient,  and 
talks  to  herself  in  a  low  voice.  She  articulates  phrases, 
interspersed  with  the  words  fortune,  liberty,  committee, 
Revolution,  rascal,  warrant,  decree,  etc.  She  applies 
many  of  them  to  the  Moderates.  She  is  angry  and 
transported  with  passion  when  opposed,  especially 
when  they  desire  to  prevent  her  from  taking  water. 
She  once  bit  a  companion  with  so  much  fury  as  to 
take  out  a  piece  of  flesh.  The  disposition  of  this 
woman  had  therefore  outlived  her  understanding. 
She  rarely  leaves  her  cell,  generally  remaining  there 
in  bed.  .  .  .  She  takes  but  few  steps,  most  frequently 
proceeding  upon  all  fours,  and  extends  herself  upon 
the  ground.  ...  I  have  seen  her  devour  straw, 
feathers,  dried  leaves,  and  morsels  of  meat  lying  in 
the  dirt.  She  drinks  cistern  water  whilst  they  wash 
the  courts,  although  it  may  be  dirty,  preferring  this 
drink  to  every  other. 

"  I  endeavoured  to  induce  her  to  write.     She  traced 


La  Salpetriere  355 

a  few  words,  but  was  never  able  to  complete  a 
sentence.  She  never  gave  any  indication  of  hysteria. 
When  we  wished  to  obtain  her  portrait  in  1816  she 
willingly  sat  for  it,  but  appeared  to  attach  no  im- 
portance to  the  work  of  the  painter.  .  .  ."  This  was 
the  extraordinary  representation  of  Theroigne  by 
Gabriel. 

On  May  ist,  1817,  her  physical  health  gave  way. 
She  was  taken  to  the  infirmary,  where  she  died  on 
June  9th,  at  the  age  of  fifty-seven,  without  for  a 
moment  being  restored  to  reason.  An  autopsy  showed 
the  abnormal  condition  of  her  brain. 

Thus,  at  the  hour  when  the  great  Napoleon  was 
wearing  out  his  life  in  distant  Saint  Helena,  the  career 
of  Theroigne  de  Mericourt  came  to  its  sad  close.  It 
was  difficult  to  see  again,  in  the  blotched,  livid,  and 
fleshless  creature  she  had  become,  the  heroic  charm, 
the  clear  flaming  eyes  of  the  woman  of  the  people, 
whose  great  love  had  not  been  lavished  upon  a  man 
or  upon  men,  but  upon  an  ideal,  the  passion  for  justice, 
for  liberty — for  the  Revolution. 


APPENDIX   A 

THEROIGNE   AND   THE  ROYALIST   PRESS 

EFERENCE  has  been  made  in  the  text  to  the  treatment 
X\_  of  Theroigne  by  the  Royalist  Press.  Among  the  many 
journals  which  caricatured  her,  the  Actes  des  Apotrts  was  per- 
haps the  worst  offender.  The  skit  entitled  "Club  de  la 
Revolution  "  appeared  in  No.  23.  No.  32  contains  a  letter  dated 
February  2nd,  1790,  written  from  the  Hotel  de  Grenoble,  in 
which  The'roigne  is  supposed  to  say: 

"  Your  journal,  monsieur,  being  consecrated  to  the  purpose  of 
spreading  throughout  the  universe  the  new  principles  intended  to 
ensure  the  happiness  of  France  and  of  all  other  nations,  I  beg  you 
to  insert  in  one  of  your  first  demagogic  works  the  beginning  of  a 
poem  I  wish  to  dedicate  to  one  of  the  most  illustrious  sovereigns 
who  has  filled  the  chair  of  the  nation  with  capability  and  weight. 
My  righteous  impatience  to  sing  the  praises  of  this  great  genius  does 
not  allow  me  to  wait  for  the  conclusion  of  the  work  which  I  have 
the  honour  of  addressing  you,  if  the  public  will  deign  to  accept  this 
feeble  attempt  by  a  feminine  national  muse.  She  dare  not  flatter 
herself  that  she  will  score  a  success  with  it,  unless  on  account  of 
the  important  topic  she  handles,  a  topic  which  should  render  her 
poem  interesting  to  all  posterity. 

"  I  am,  with  admiration  of  your  demagogy,  monsieur,  your  very 
humble  and  obedient  servant,  equal  in  rights  and  in  knowledge 
of  man, 

"  THEROIGNE  DE  MERICOURT, 

"  Wife  of  the  Modern  Sovereign." 

Then  follows  a  so-called  "  herio-natio-epi-constitutiono-politico- 
comic  "  poem  entitled  "  La  Targetade,"  beginning  : 

Je  chante  ce  lourdaud,  president  de  la  France, 
Et  par  droit  de  manege  et  par  droit  d'importance. 
357 


35 8  Appendix  A 

The  first  part  of  the  Populus  play  referred  to  on  page  119 
appears  in  No.  38.  Populus,  Mirabeau,  and  Barnave  are  repre- 
sented as  her  lovers.  The  Abbe  Sieyes  also  plays  a  part. 

In  one  act  she  is  made  to  say : 

O  destins  fortunes,  triomphe  glorieux  ! 
Vingt  senateurs  par  jour  remplissant  tous  mes  voeux 
Accourent  a  mes  pieds,  d'une  flamme  immortelle 
Presenter  a  1'amour  une  offrande  nouvelle. 

She  swears  to  Populus  that  she  loves  no  one  but  him.  Never- 
theless, Populus  has  been  told  that  Mirabeau  is  his  rival.  He 
offers  to  fight  him ;  an  offer  that  Mirabeau  refuses  on  principle, 
for  he  never  fights.  The  farce  continues.  Two  more  lovers 
appear,  Barnave  and  Anon,  under  which  guise  Camille  Des- 
moulins  was  indicated.  At  length  the  Secretary  of  the  Assembly 
arrives  and  tells  Theroigne  that  before  the  end  of  the  day  she 
must  privately  choose  between  her  lovers.  In  doubt,  The'roigne 

soliloquises : 

O  ciel,  dans  quel  incertitude 
Flottent  mes  sens  et  mes  esprits  ! 

She  appeals  to  Mirabeau,  regretting  that  she  is  not  permitted  to 
divide  her  affections  amongst  several,  and  asks  him  to  remain  at 
her  feet  at  least  till  Populus  comes.  But  he  flees  from  her  cry- 
ing, "  Que  le  diable  t'emporte." 

In  the  end  she  makes  it  up  with  Populus. 

THEROIGNE 

Tu  me  verras,  malgre  ce  soupcon  trop  injuste, 
Fidele  a  mes  serments  comme  la  diete  auguste. 

POPULUS 

Dans  cet  heureux  espoir,  sans  doute,  il  m'est  bien  doux 
De  mettre,  avec  mon  coeur,  un  trone  a  tes  genoux. 

THEROIGNE 

Protege  ces  noeuds  saints,  o  dieu  de  la  patrie  ! 
Et  que  les  Populus  qui  nous  devront  la  vie, 
De  1'aristocratie  ardens  persecuteurs, 
Deviennent  potentats  et  regenerateurs  ; 
Puisse  le  tendre  amour  sur  leur  jeune  visage 
Imprimer  d'un  epoux  la  seduisante  image  ; 
Et  que  regulateurs  des  destins  de  1'etat, 
Chacun  d'eux,  soit  un  jour  president  du  senat. 

and  so  the  play  closes. 


Th£roigne  and  the  Royalist  Press        359 

The  following  appears  in  No.  47  of  the  same  journal.  "This 
morning  the  beautiful  Mericourt,  displeased  with  her  maid,  spoke 
harshly  to  her.  The  servant,  making  a  mistaken  application  of 
the  first  article  of  the  Declaration  of  the  Rights  of  Men  and 
Women,  dared  to  use  her  hands  against  our  incomparable  friend, 
and  knocked  her  down  in  a  manner  quite  new  to  Mile  Theroigne. 
The  neighbours  say  she  fell  backwards  and  appeared  to  go  into 
convulsions.  Then  she  remained  quiet  for  a  time  as  though  she 
were  dead."  A  bulletin  as  to  her  condition  appeared  in  No.  49. 
"  This  divine  maiden,  restored  by  heaven  .  .  .  was  within  an  ace 
of  death."  Doctors,  surgeons,  and  apothecaries  were  called  in  to 
relieve  her,  and  the  treatment  which  brought  about  a  cure  was  by 
applications  of  discourses  by  M.  de  Gouay  d'Arcy  on  her  left 
temple,  perorations  by  Target,  and  a  harangue  by  Mirabeau 
steeped  in  salts  of  ammonia. 

For  a  few  numbers  she  was  left  in  peace,  and  then  followed 
coarse  jokes  in  which  Target  and  Mme  de  Stael  figured. 

In  No.  94  Robespierre  is  supposed  to  refer  to  her  in  a  letter  to 
one  Mile  Suzanne  Forber.  "You  know  Mile  Theroigne?"  he 
writes.  "  We  often  speak  of  you.  She  is  going  to  be  married," 
and  he  proceeds  to  ask  his  correspondent  to  look  up  certain 
records  at  Arras,  her  home,  in  order  that  she  may  trace 
Th^roigne's  descent  from  the  noble  family  of  the  Comte  de 
Terouenne.  Some  numbers  later  the  reply  to  this  letter  comes, 
in  which  there  is  given  a  remarkable  genealogical  tree  from  which 
the  "  Semiramis  of  the  Revolution,"  as  Suzanne  Forber  names 
her,  is  supposed  to  have  sprung. 

In  the  interval  another  letter  from  Theroigne  appears  to  her 
virtuous  friends  the  Apostles,  in  which  she  signs  herself  "  frater- 
nally as  demagogically,  your  sincere  and  faithful  friend." 

In  No.  98  a  marriage  has  been  arranged  between  Quichotte- 
Hudibras-Rodomant-Gavachin,  hitherto  known  as  the  Marquis 
de  Saint-Huruge,  and  Demoiselle  Madelon-Friquet-Dulcine'e- 
Theroigne  de  Mericourt,  majeure  (fans  ct  mineure  de  coutume% 
a  widow  by  her  first  marriage  with  Cromwell-Honore-Mirabeau; 
and  this  affords  great  distress  to  Populus. 

Some  numbers  later  she  is  affianced  to  Populus  again,  and  a 
grand  account  of  the  national  marriage  celebrated  at  Surenne,  near 
Paris,  between  M.  Populus  and  Dlle  Theroigne  de  Mere-y-court, 
is  given. 


3^o  Appendix  A 

The  marriage  day  of  Dona  Terouenne  was  announced  by  a 
discharge  of  60  guns  in  honour  of  the  60  districts  of  Paris,  and 
60  presidents  were  invited  to  the  ceremony.  The  priest  who 
pronounced  the  nuptial  blessing  called  her  the  rostire  gentrale 
of  the  French  empire,  the  star  of  the  nation  three  times,  the  star 
of  39  provinces  of  the  kingdom,  the  torch  of  83  departments, 
and  the  people  cried  three  times  "Vive  Terouenne,  vive  Populus, 
vive  Robespierre ! "  There  was  a  dinner,  opera,  ballet,  and 
altogether  a  brilliant  fete,  after  which  Lady  Terouenne,  mounting 
her  good  steed,  rides  off  to  quell  an  insurrection  and  leaves 
Populus  repining.  At  the  close  of  twenty-eight  printed  pages  he 
is  consoled  and  all  ends  well  with  the  verse  : 

J'aimais  Terouenne  et  j'ai  perdu  son  coeur, 
Pendant  trois  jours,  mon  ame  en  fut  emue  ; 
Mais,  a  la  fin,  jugeant  mieux  mon  malheur, 
Je  vis  que  ce  n'etait  qu'une  fille  perdue. 

The  Apocalypse  was  a  short  way  behind  the  Actes  des  Apotres 
in  profuseness  of  ridicule,  but  not  at  all  in  coarseness.  In  its 
pages  Mme  de  Stae'l  becomes  a  joint  victim  with  Theroigne.  In 
No.  3  the  following  appears  :  "  Carried  away  by  her  patriotism, 
Theroigne  made  a  speech  at  the  Jacobins.  She  spoke  with  that 
victorious  eloquence  which  masters  minds  and  obtains  votes. 
Suddenly  her  voice  grew  weak,  and  in  the  middle  of  a  phrase 
she  went  off  into  a  dead  faint.  General  consternation  ensued. 
Barnave,  Mirabeau,  Le  Chapelier,  and  Robespierre  rushed  to- 
wards the  daughter  of  the  Revolution  and  made  her  inhale 
aromatic  vinegar.  Dr.  Guillotin  was  unfortunately  absent,  and 
Populus,  distracted,  ran  to  find  him." 

No.  4  contains  a  letter  to  the  authors  of  the  Apocalypse 
purporting  to  be  from  Mirabeau's  head  jockey.  He  has  had 
the  pleasure  of  reading  the  pages  of  their  journal  in  Mile 
Theroigne's  boudoir  when  he  went  there  to  deliver  his  master's 
love-letters.  He  describes  a  banquet  followed  by  a  picnic  to 
Longchamp,  at  which  Theroigne,  dressed  in  her  favourite  riding- 
habit,  led  the  way  mounted  on  a  superb  English  bay.  Mirabeau 
followed  in  a  gorgeous  "wiski."  Then  came  a  number  of  others, 
and  in  the  rear  Mme  de  Stae'l  and  Talleyrand  in  a  berline. 
When  the  cavalcade  reached  the  Bois  de  Boulogne,  the  wheels  of 
the  wiski  became  entangled  in  the  trees  and  it  overturned, 


Theroigne  and  the  Royalist  Press       361 

precipitating  its  occupant  upon  mother  earth.  Unfortunately 
Le  Chapelier's  horses  rushed  upon  the  debris  of  the  wiski  and 
his  cabriolet  was  upset,  whilst  the  berline  came  down  upon  the 
Test.  The  resulting  jumble  must  be  read  in  the  original  to  be 
appreciated. 

In  No.  7  there  is  a  rechristening  of  many  of  the  Paris  streets. 
The  Rue  des  Boucheries  was  to  be  renamed  Rue  Barnave ;  the 
Rue  du  Brave,  Mirabeau ;  the  Rue  Tire-Boudin,  Rue  de  Stael, 
and  so  on ;  while  the  Rue  des  Sept-Voies  was  to  be  known  in 
future  as  Rue  Theroigne. 

Coarse  jests  run  likewise  through  Nos.  10,  12,  14,  16,  18, 
.and  19. 

The  Journal  de  Pie  of  February  nth,  1792,  remarks  that 
Theroigne  was  received  well  by  the  Jacobins,  and  that  she  had 
reversed  her  principles.  A  few  days  later  the  following  appears 
in  its  pages  :  "  Mme  D.,  having  said  aloud  some  days  ago  when 
she  saw  Mile  Theroigne  de  Mericourt  that  she  wore  a  Jacobin 
air,  was  accosted  in  the  Rue  S.  Martin,  near  the  Cafe  de  PEstrade, 
by  four  sansculottes  who  struck  her  a  violent  blow  on  the  chest 
which  knocked  her  down.  She  was  saved  from  the  hands  of 
these  brigands  by  an  honest  gentleman  of  her  acquaintance  who 
put  them  to  flight.  Some  one  cried  out,  '  We  must  complain 
to  M.  Petion.'  One  of  the  brigands  turned  round  and  shouted 
back,  '  He  won't  hurt  us.'  We  leave  it  to  honest  folk  to  make 
their  comments  on  this  expression,  clear  as  it  is  to  us." 

On  February  27th,  1792,  there  is  an  account  of  a  duel  between 
Theroigne  and  a  lady  aristocrat.  They  did  not  catch  hold  of 
each  other  by  the  hair,  as  the  spectators  half  expected  they 
would,  but  they  arranged  a  meeting  in  the  Bois  de  Boulogne. 
Instead  of  using  gunpowder,  their  seconds  loaded  the  pistols 
with  powder  for  the  hair,  and  all  the  shots  missed  fire.  This 
joke  displeased  the  principals  so  deeply  that  they  avenged  them- 
selves upon  the  perpetrators  for  the  affront  offered  to  their 
courage. 

The  Martyrologt  National,  the  Chronique  du  Man1gc>  and 
the  Feuille  du  Jour  were  amongst  the  papers  that  amused 
themselves  at  Theroigne's  expense.  A  quotation  from  the  pages 
of  Lt  Rodeur  will  serve  to  complete  this  short  account  of  her 
claims  to  be  regarded  as  a  never-failing  target  for  the  shafts  of  wit 
let  loose  by  aristocrat  pamphleteers  : 


362  Appendix  A 

"  '  LE  RODEUR '  REUNI  AU  CHRONIQUEUR  SECRET  DE  LA 
REVOLUTION 

"  Mile  Theroigne,  who  continually  appears  as  the  object  of  the 
good  and  bad  pleasantries  of  MM.  the  soi-disant  forty-five  directors 
of  the  National  Company  of  the  Actes  des  Apotres,  is  not  an 
imaginary  being,  as  many  ignorant  people  have  believed.  She 
is  an  amiable  young  lady  of  two-and-twenty,  born  in  the  Luxem- 
burg. She  was  at  Rome  when  M.  Bailli  sounded  at  Versailles 
the  destruction  of  all  the  orders,  and  hastened  to  return  to  the 
banks  of  the  Seine  to  protect  the  dawning  liberty  of  the  French. 
Her  enthusiasm  for  the  rights  of  man  soon  made  itself  felt,  and, 
as  she  took  up  the  cause  of  the  people  with  great  warmth,  the 
forty-five  apostles  imagined  an  intrigue  between  her  and  M.  Populus. 
This  admirable  girl  has  neither  father  nor  mother ;  but  she  enjoys 
an  income  of  ten  thousand  livres,  which  she  shares  with  the 
honourable  architects  of  the  French  Constitution.  The  honorable* 
to  whom  she  gives  dinner  have  praised  her;  she  has  become 
noticeable  in  the  Salle  du  Manege,  assisting  regularly  at  all  the 
meetings,  at  all  the  debates,  and  encouraging  by  gesture  and 
voice  the  honourable  members.  Revolutionary  committees  have 
been  held  at  her  house.  They  have  driven  many  nails  into  the 
machinery  of  the  Constitution ;  they  have  so  exalted  the  rights 
of  man  that  the  forty-five  apostles,  seized  by  utter  aristocratic 
impotence,  have  permitted  themselves  every  form  of  ridicule  and 
detraction  that  jealous  rage  could  devise.  Into  what  gall  have 
they  not  dipped  their  pens  of  base  alloy  in  the  process  of 
besmirching  so  vast  a  reputation  as  that  of  our  heroine !  How 
correct  was  Voltaire  when  he  called  envy  the  eighth  human  sin  \ 
But  that  which  will  astonish  our  descendants  and  the  centuries 
which  are  still  in  the  embryo  in  the  abyss  of  time,  is  that  among 
the  friends  of  Mile  Theroigne  there  is  not  one  who  has  dared 
publicly  to  take  up  the  cause  of  this  adorable  nymph  and  to 
prove  her  inviolable  in  the  eyes  of  the  forty-five  apostles.  The 
honorables  have  maintained  a  far  too  modest  silence  in  this 
matter,  and  have  contented  themselves  with  meriting  the  superb 
device  of  Louis  IV.  : 

"  Regna  Assignata 
Page  terra  marique  parta." 


APPENDIX  B 

NOTE  ON  SOME  PORTRAITS  OF  THEROIGNE  DE 
MERICOURT 

i.   A     PAINTING  at  the  Musee  Carnavalet  attributed  to  Vestier. 
./~\.    Theroigne  is  wearing  a  ribbon  in  her  fair  hair  and  a 
fichu  over  a  yellow  bodice.     Frontispiece. 

2.  A  painting  at  the  Musee  Carnavalet.     Artist  unknown. 

3.  A  painting  attributed  to  Greuze,  exhibited  at  the  Trocadero 
in  1878.     Described  by  Henry  Jouin  in  "Notices  des  Portraits 
Nationaux"  (1879).     "En  buste,  la  tete  tournee  vers  1'epaule 
gauche ;  robe  bleue,   ouverte,  fichu   croise ;  ceinture   blanche  ; 
grand  bonnet  sur  les  cheveux."     Page  33. 

4.  Portrait  at  the  Bibliotheque  Nationale,  wearing  a  cap  of 
linen  over  her  hair,  which  falls  over  her  shoulders  in  ringlets. 
One  breast  uncovered.     Reproduced  by  Dayot. 

5.  A  drawing  by  Danlou ;  wearing  an  Amazon  hat  with  tri- 
coloured  ribbons.     In  the  possession  of  the  Vicomte  de  Reiset 
and  reproduced  in  the  Garnet.     Page  213. 

6.  An  engraving  by  Devritz  of  No.  4.    Page  177. 

7.  Portrait  appearing  as  a  frontispiece  to  M.  Marcellin  Pellet's 
"  Life  of  Theroigne,"  and  discovered  by  him. 

8.  A  sketch  by  Raffet  reproduced  in  Lamartine's  "Histoire 
des    Girondins,"     inspired    probably    by    the    portrait    in    the 
Bibliotheque  Nationale.     Page  105. 

9.  The  profile  drawing  by  Gabriel,  made  at  the  La  Salpetriere 
in  1816  when  Theroigne  was  mad.     This  is  the  only  authentic 
portrait.     Page  335. 


363 


INDEX 


Actes  des  Apotres  (Les),  117,  119, 

131,  134,  139,  300,  314 
Aiguillon,  Due  de,  132 
Arne,  Dr.,  42 

Artois,  Comte  d',  67,  74,  81 
Audu,  Reine,  322 

Bailly,  81,  114,  264 

Barnave,  67,  122,  134,  135,  136, 
263,  343 

Barras,  340 

Barreau,  Alexandrine,  273 

Basire,  294,  295,  343 

Bastille,  74,  75.  ?6,  77,  79,  80,  85, 
299 ;  Plate  of  Fall  of  the  Bas- 
tille, 69 

Baudet,  145 

Beauharnais,  122,  260 

Bedford,  Duke  of,  122 

Bender,  Marechal,  202,  203 

Berthier,  83,  293 

Billaud-Varennes,  325 

Bosc  d'Antic,  128 

Bouille,  304 

Bouyon,  Abbe,  313 

Brent,  Miss,  42 

Brissot,  120,  122,  132,  140,  325, 
338-  343  5  Portrait,  267 

Broglie,  Due  de,  136 

Bronsonnet,  296,  297 

Campinados,     Mme,     Theroigne 

known  as,  22,  36,  41,  46 
Carra,  200,  202,  203 
Cazotte,  Elizabeth,  325 
Cervenon,  41 
Chabot,  294,  305 
Chabray,  Louison,  97 
Chamfort,  122 
Champcenetz,  117,  118,  134 
Chapelier,  67,  136,  137 
Charton,  Mme,  179 


Chateauvieux,  122,  261,  296,  297- 

3°°.  3°3>  3°4 
Chenier,  Andre,  297,  298 
Chenier,   M.   J.,    122,   297,    298 ; 

Portrait,  249 
Clamend,  Leonard,  243 
Clamend,  Mme,  23 
Clermont  Tonnerre,  121,  132 
Cloots,  A.,  140 
Club  des  Cordeliers,  80,  114,  140, 

144,  147,  150 

Club  des  Feuillants,  114,  126 
Club  des  Jacobins,  140,  147,  i62r 

201,  225,  264,  265,  290,  295,  296, 

298,  304,  326,  352 
Colbert,  Mme,  23,  25,  26 
Collot   d'Herbois,   291,  297,  304, 

305,  326,  343 

Conde,  Prince  de,  82,  206 
Condorcet,  122,  125,  131,  154,  155, 

343 

Condorcet,  Mme  de,  132,  305,  328 
"  Contrat  Social,"  180 
Couthon,  345 
Cramer,  Professor,  46 
Custine,  326 

Daguet,  128 

Dansard,  166 

Danton,   114,   140,   149,  167,  266, 

326,  343,  348 

Dauphin  (Louis  XVII.),  309,  320 
David,  Giacomo,  39,  40 
David,  J.  L.,  298,  299,  300 
Day  of  Poignards,  263 
De  Launay,  75,  76,  78,  79 
Desmoulins,     Camille,     74,    114, 

120,     122,    140,    147,    149,   299, 

315 

Dufourny,  269,  270 
Dumouriez,  327,  328 
Dupont  de  Nemours,  298 


365 


366 


Index 


Duport-Dutertre,  197 
Durazzo,  Marquis,  57,  58,  59 

Ecureux,  Henriette,  175 

Elie,  76 

Elizabeth,  Archduchess  of  Austria, 

210 

Elliott,  Mrs.,  192,  193 
Espinchal,  Comte  Thomas  d',  34 
Esquirol,  351 

Fabre  d'Eglantine,  140,  149 
Fauchet,  Abbe,  305 
Feast  of  Pikes,  259,  260 
Fernig  Sisters,  273,  275 
Forster,  George,  341 
Foulon,  83,  293 
Franklin,  Benjamin,  303 
Frederick  the  Great,  "185 
Freiburg  in   Breisgau,   208,   209, 
227 

Gabriel,  341 

Garat,  67 

Gattey,  117 

Gaudet,  266,  305,  325 

Genlis,  Comtesse  de,  122,  167 

Girondins,  326,  328,  337,  338 

Gorsas,  296 

Gouttes,  Abbe",  137 

Greiffenstein,  Rudler  von,  208 

Greuze,  122 

Guillotin,  Dr.,  132 

Hall,  Adela,  319 

Hammersley,  35,  59,  60 

Hubert,  167 

Helvetius,  Mme,  122,  125 

Hion,  266,  299 

Hulin,  76 

Hyde  de  Neuville,  145,  146 

Joseph  II.,  Emperor  of  Austria, 
185,  191 

Kaunitz,  Prince,  246,  253,  271 
Kertzen,  41 

Kufstein,  20,    125,   163,  208,  217, 
240,  245,  256,  257 

La  Boverie,  17,  187,  188,  191,  198, 

221,  227,  234,  235 


Lacombe  Rose  (Claire),  165,  322 

La  Fargue,  316 

Lafayette,  78,  95,  98,  100,  114 

Lahaye,  Elizabeth,  21 

Lahaye,  Mme,  Theroigne  known 

as,  247,  253 
Lally-Tollendal,  81 
Landresc,  Baron  de,  208,  209,  217, 

230 

Lanthenas,  271,  272 
Larminat,  127,  128 
Lasource,  266 
Le  Blanc,  Francois,  222-30,   240, 

241,  243-9,  256 
Lechoux,  200 
Le  Comte,  Mme,  Theroigne  known 

as,  48 

Le  Couteulx  et  Cie,  344 
Legislative    Assembly,   265,   315, 

320 

Leon,  Pauline,  167 
Leopold  II.,  Emperor  of  Austria, 

185,    aoi,   212,   224,    225,   227, 

230,  240,  246,  251,  253,  255,  256, 

258,  271,  273,  288,  352  ;  Portrait, 

19S 

Lepelletier,  1 68 
Le  Sourd,  315 
Liancourt,  Due  de,  136 
Lostalot,  266-70 
Louis  XIV.,  296 
Louis  XV.,  Hi 
Louis  XVI.,  67,  80-2,  85,  90,  93, 

100,  101, 151,  188,  229,  254,  260, 

261,  264,  306,  308-10,  320,  323, 

328 

Madame  Royale,  320 

Maillard,  86,  92,  93,  97 

Maillebois,  Comte  de,  237 

Manuel,  272 

Mara,  Mme,  46,  47 

Marat,  114,  120,  168,  326,  339,  340, 

343 

Maret,  128 
Marie  Antoinette,  19,  67,  80,  82-4, 

89,  94,  98-100,   186,  200,  244, 

256,  262,  273,  309,  310,  320,  321, 

323,  328,  344 
Mederer,  245,  246,  341 
Meersch,  van  der,  194 
Mengin-Salabert,   Baron,   28,   29, 

3".  136 


Index 


36? 


Mercy- Argenteau,  200,    204,   215, 

230,  273 

Mesdames,  261,  262 
Metternich,  20,  241,  257 
Minimes,  Societe  Fraternelle  des, 

168,  278,  284,  288 
Mirabeau,   67,  98,   114,   1 1 8,   122, 

132,  136,  139,  140,  194,201,263, 

348 

Mirabeau  ("Tonneau"),  118 
Momoro,  140 

Montagnards,  326,  328,  341 
Montveran,  Tournacheau  de,  102 
Moore,  Dr.  John,  323,  324 
Morellet,  125 
Mounier,  67,  93,  98 

Napoleon,  355 

National  Assembly,  63,  66-8,  80, 
81,  83,  84,  95,  99-101,  104,  126, 
128,  131,  151,  157,  216,  229,  260, 
264,  265 

National  Convention,  265 

Necker,  66,  72 

Necker,  Mme,  121,  122 

Noot,  Hendrik  van  der,  192-7 

Olympe  de  Gouges,  132,  157 
Orleans,  Due  d'  (Philippe  Egalite), 

68,  69,  117,  124,  136,  137,  326, 

348 

Palais  Royal,  68,  72,  79 

Palloy,  80,  296 

Palm,  Etta,  161-5,  l67 

Pare,  149 

Peltier,  117,  118,  319 

Peretti,  42 

Perregaux,  35,  58,  101,  1 86,  188, 

189,  193,  205,  215,  242,248,  257, 

258,  327 
Persan,    Marquis   de,  32,  36,  37, 

53,    58,    190,    248;    agreement 

with  Theroigne,  32  ;  his  letters, 

37-9.  4o,  53-5 
Person,    M.    Fra^ois,    198,   233, 

251 
Petion,  Jerome,  84,  95,  135,   138, 

263,    293,   295,    298,   206,    207, 

309,  310,  315;  Portrait,  510 
Pitt,  William,  328 
Poitiers,   Mme,  Theroigne    takes 

name  of,  182 


Polignac,  Mme  de,  247 
Populus,  119,  120,  135,  138,  139, 
201,  319;  Portrait  of,  123 

Rabaut  de  Saint-Etienne,  67 
Regnaud  de  Saint-Jean  d'Angely, 

349,  351 

Renant,  Rose,  175 
Restaut,  297 
Reveillon,  66 
Rivarol,  117,  118 
Robert,  Mme  (nee  Keralio),  166, 

167 
Robespierre,   46,    132,    136,    137, 

140,  265,  266,  290,  291,  304,  305, 

326,  337,  343,  345,  348 
Robespierre  le  Jeune,  348 
Roederer,  167,  307 
Roland,  122 
Roland,   Mme,    122-5,    128,     167, 

328 

Romme,  Charles,  127 
Romme,  Gilbert,  126-31,  139,  343  ; 

Portrait,  159 
Ronsin,  140 
Roucher,  297 

Rousseau,  Charles  Louis,  158,  161 
Rousseau,  J.  J.,  Hi,  1 80,  303 

Saint-Huruge,  293,  307 
Saint-Just,    140,   343,    345,    352; 

Portrait,  301 
Saint-Malon,  Comte  de,  199,  206, 

207 

Salpetriere,  La,  347,  349,  352,  353 
Santerre,  291,  292,  303,  309,  310 
Santerre,  Mme,  291 
Schlosser,  Antoine,  247 
Schoeniger,  Andre,  217-23 
Selys,  Baron  de,  237-43,  258,  327, 

344 

Selys,  Mme  de,  238,  239,  242 
Selys,  Victoire  de,  238 
Septenville,  Fran9oise- Louise,  41 
Si<§yes,  Abbe,  67,  84,  114,  117,  121, 

122,  131,  133-7,  139,  215,  260, 

270,  349 

Sieyes,  Joseph-Honore,  84 
Sombreuil,  Mile  de,  325 
Sponville,  127,  128 
Stael,  Mme  de,  121,  134,  305,  328 
Strogonoff,   Count   (Otcher),   127, 

130,   139 


Index 


Suleau,  F.,  118,  311-15,  318-20, 
348 ;  his  birth,  314  ;  trial,  314  ;  at 
Coblenz,  314;  his  death,  315 

Tailhard,  127 

Talleyrand,  133,  260 

Tallien,  167,  168,  305 

Talma,  Julie,  122 

Target,  67,  133,  134, 

Tenducci,  Dora,  42-5 

Tenducci,  Ferdinando,  his  birth, 
41 ;  career  in  United  Kingdom, 
41-5  ;  and  Dr.  Arne,  42  ;  elopes 
with  an  heiress,  42  ;  imprisoned, 
42  ;  in  debt,  43,  49  ;  his  pupils, 
46 ;  agreement  with  Theroigne, 
47,  48  ;  in  Paris,  50 ;  declared 
bankrupt,  53  ;  breaks  his  con- 
tract, 56,  57 

Terwagne,  Joseph,  2 1, 53, 61 , 62, 340 

Terwagne,  Pierre,  Senior,  21,  50, 

235 

Terwagne  (or  Theroigne),  Pierre, 
Junior,  21,  53,  60-2,  187,  191, 
198,  199,  212,  215,  221,  230-6, 
239,  242,  243,  253 

Terwagne,  Pierrot,  62,  243 

Theobold,  Madame,  Theroigne 
known  as,  20,  218 

Theroigne  de  Mericourt,  Anne- 
Josephe,  birth,  21 ;  at  convent 
school,  22 ;  herds  cows,  22 ; 
appearance,  23  ;  education,  24 ; 
in  London,  25  ;  elopes,  26 ;  her 
musical  abilities,  30,  35  ;  letters 
from  the  Marquis  de  Persan, 
31,  37-9,  54,  55;  meets  David, 
39  ;  her  daughter,  41  ;  relations 
with  Tenducci,  41,  45-53,  56, 
57 ;  in  Genoa,  56,  60 ;  her 
finances,  58-61,  187,  188,  237, 
247  ;  in  Rome,  62 ;  interest  in 
the  National  Assembly,  63,  66, 
68;  at  the  Hotel  de  Toulouse, 
65  ;  in  the  gardens  of  the  Palais 
Royal,  68,  72,  79 ;  on  July  I4th, 
75'  76,  77,  78;  on  July  I7th, 
80,  8 1  ;  on  October  5th  and  6th, 
85-109 ;  at  Versailles,  92,  107  ; 
evidence  against  her,  101-7  ;  her 
democratic  views,  108-10,  207  ; 
her  club,  113,  125-31,  134-44; 
and  the  royalist  press,  118-20, 


151,  1 80,  197,  200,  256,  257, 
281,  282,  293-6,  312,  357-62; 
figures  in  a  caricature  of  a  club, 
I33.  J34:  plate,  141  ;  her  powers 
of  oratory,  145-9,  3*7,  3*8;  at 
the  Club  des  Cordeliers,  147- 
50 ;  marches  with  the  deputies,. 
152 ;  works  for  the  women's 
cause,  152,  157,  158,  162  ;  mem- 
ber of  the  Societ6  Fraternelle 
des  Minimes,  168 ;  her  speech 
there,  282-8 ;  leaves  Paris,  181-4; 
afraid  of  arrest,  183  ;  travels  ta 
Marcourt,  184-6;  her  mission 
to  Brabant,  185,  1 88,  191, 194-8, 
202-4  ;  her  jewels,  187,  188, 
258;  at  La  Boverie,  187,  188, 
191,  198-200 ;  and  van  der 
Noot,  191,  193 ;  and  Mercy- 
Argenteau,  200,  204,  230;  her 
arrest,  202,  204,  205  ;  at  Coblenz, 
206 ;  and  the  Prince  de  Conde, 

207  ;   at   Freiburg  in  Breisgau, 

208  ;  letters  to  her  brother,  212, 
230-34;    at    Kufstein,    221-43; 
obtains  a  piano,  221,  222;  her 
suffering,  222,  223  ;  at  the  Cha- 
teau de  Fanson,  237  ;  and  the 
Baron  de  Selys,  237-9,  242,  243  ; 
and    La  Valette,   244 ;    her   ill 
health,     245-8:      called     Mme 
Lahaye,  247 ;    letter  to   Perre- 
gaux,  248,  257 ;  and  Le  Blanc, 
252,  253;   in  court,  253-6;   re- 
turns  to  Paris,  258;  supposed 
doings  at   Bellevue,   262,    263 ; 
reception  by  the  Jacobins,  265- 
73 ;    her  military  ardour,   273, 
277,     281-4;     sne    receives    a 
check,  289-92  ;  at  a  civic  ban- 
quet,   292,    293 ;    her    boudoir, 
293~6 ;     and     the     Swiss     of 
Chateauvieux,     296-304 ;     and 
Marie-Joseph  Chenier,  299,  300 ; 
and  Mme  de  Stael,   305  ;    and 
the  demonstrations  of  June  20, 
306-10;  on  August  10,  311-13, 
317-20 ;      kills     Suleau,     319  ; 
receives    a    civic   crown,    322  : 
John    Moore's    description    of, 
323,  324  ;   and   the   September 
massacres,  325  ;  and  Dumouriez, 
327,    328 ;    her   stirring   appeal 


Index 


369 


to  the  48  sections,  328-34;  as- 
saulted by  the  Jacobins  women, 
338-41  ;  description  by  George 
Forster,  341,  342  ;  her  madness, 
343  ;  arrest,  344  ;  letter  to  Saint- 
Just,  345,  346 ;  at  the  Salpetriere, 
347-55  ;  death,  355  ;  Portraits, 
Appendix  B,  363  ;  Plates, 
frontispiece,  33,  105,  177,  213, 

335 

Thiebault,  Baron,  315-18 
Thouret,  67,  133 
Thuriot,  297 
Tuileries,  307,  308,  309,  320,  321, 

352 


Valette,  Chevalier  Maynard  de  la, 
79,  107-10,  136,  199,  228,  243, 
244 

Varennes,  263 

Vergniaud,  305,  325 

Versailles,  68,  81,  83,  84,  90-94, 
96,  98,  107,  262,  263,  352 ;  march 
of  the  women  to,  86  et  seq 

Veytard,  Fran9ois-Xavier,  102,  103 

Volney,  67,  122 

Voltaire,  ill,  264,  303 

Walpole,  122 
Young,  Arthur,  71 


Printed  by  Htuell,  Watson  6-  Viney,  Ld.,  London  and  Aylesbury. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below, 
or  on  the  date  to  which  renewed.  Renewals  only: 

Tel.  No.  642-3405 

Renewals  may  be  made  4  days  prior  to  date  due. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


- 


nd  uf  WINTER  Q 
subject  to  recall 


3  i  73  fl  tf 


CIRCULATION  DEPT, 


DLU     •    ' 


LD2lA-40m-3,'72 
(Q1173S10)476-A-S2 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


Yc  741% 


Elder&Gi] 


